Town councilors approve sewer rate increase in South Windham

By Ed Pierce

After reviewing a study about the sewer rate for South Windham customers, Windham Town councilors unanimously approved a rate increase effective in March during a meeting on Tuesday evening.

Windham Town Councilors have raised the base
sewer rate for South Windham for the first time 
since 2009 and the measure is expected to have
those who use more water pay a greater share
of operating the sewer system there.
FILE PHOTO  

According to information in the study, the current South Windham Sewer Fee structure was developed and agreed to by members of the town council during late 2008 and early 2009 in response to the Windham/Gorham Conveyance project. The existing sewer fee structure has been in place since April 2009, and the rates for base users, excess usage above base, and ready to serve charges were unchanged until councilors voted to approve a rate change schedule that started in May 2020 and runs through July 2023.

The South Windham Sewer Rate Study was prepared by Windham Finance Director Susan Rossignol, and Windham Economic Development Director Tom Bartell and used rate modeling details provided by Portland Water District Executive Director of Administration David Kane.

Through the years, the South Windham Sewer fund has been underfunded by sewer fees for each year since the construction of the current treatment system. The study outlines that to maintain affordability for the residents of South Windham Village, the Town of Windham, through its annual budget, chose to subsidize the small number of South Windham sewer users.

Construction of the Windham/Gorham Conveyance project removed the local treatment plant and replaced it with a sewage transport system from South Windham Village through Gorham to the Portland Water District wastewater treatment plant in Westbrook and extended the reach of sewer collection from the South Windham Village to include the Maine Correctional Center on Mallison Falls Road in Windham.

The rates in April 2009 were established as $48.84 for 500 cubic feet of wastewater per month and $3.24 for 100 cubic feet of wastewater above base which is the monthly average usage of single-family residences in the South Windham Village, or about 125 gallons per day.

In May 2020, councilors kept the $48.84 rate for monthly wastewater, but raised the wastewater above base fee to $7, which increased to $7.75 per month in July 2022 and $9.77 in July 2023.

The rationale for the most recent sewer rate changes is to make equal the cost of the cubic feet of wastewater and the cost of the above base rate.

The study recommended a rate increase for South Windham users to $51 for 500 cubic feet of wastewater per month and $10.20 for 100 cubic feet of wastewater above base and keeping the Ready to Serve sewer fee unchanged at $30 per month.

Assistant Town Manager Bob Burns said the rate change moves some of the burden of the cost of the annual assessment from the Windham budget onto the large wastewater users in South Windham such as the Maine Correctional Center.

He said the rationale for the sewer fee structure is that the annual cost of the system assessed by the Portland Water District would be allocated over the total number of Base Rates. The number of Base Rates assigned to a property would be based in general on the Design Flows model of the Maine Subsurface Wastewater Disposal Rule.

Burns said the rate increase amounts to about a 4 percent hike and is designed to shift more cost to larger water users in South Windham.

The study summarized for the town councilors the effects of new Design Flow guidelines, particularly as it relates to the Maine Correctional Center and the most recent construction activities there, and the reallocation of the Base Rates to the Maine Correctional Center’s published population numbers and other developments in South Windham Village.

The council vote was 6-0 with Councilors John Henry, Bill Reiner, Jarrod Maxfield, Marris Morrison Nick Kalogerakis and David Nadeau voting for the increase. Councilor Brett Jones was unable to attend the meeting. <