About 25 people gathered in La Ronge Tuesday evening to hear details on planned increases to water and sewer rates in the town.
The new fees were announced about a year ago and will involve 30 per cent increases each year until 2019, when the monthly residential fee would be $170.00.
One suggestion that has been brought forward is to install water meters in the town.
The total cost of the equipment and implementation of a metered system would be around $690,000.
Mayor Thomas Sierzycki says most people seem to favour another route.
“The general consensus that we’re feeling from the general public is perhaps a hybrid model of using the standard implementation fee, perhaps stretching it out over a longer period of time,” he says. “But also looking at where we can be more fair in terms of charging business versus a residential area versus say an apartment building.”
Sierzycki says despite the increase, La Ronge isn’t doing that bad compared to other communities in Saskatchewan when it comes to water and sewer fees.
The current cost in Nipawin, which has a population of 4,200, is $122.00 per month.
Neilburg, with a population of 500, has a monthly fee of $117.00.
The mayor also says, if needed, the matter could come to a vote sometime in the future.