PORT TOWNSEND — Residents will pay more for water and sewer service starting with their spring utility bills.
The City Council on Tuesday night voted to raise the rates by 10 percent effective March 1.
At the start of next year, water rates will go up another 10 percent and sewer costs will rise an additional 6 percent.
The increase revenues will go toward upgrading and improving Port Townsend’s aging water and sewer systems.
“Our hands are tied,” Councilman Kees Kolff said.
“We must do the responsible thing.”
Council members voted 6-1 in favor of the rate increases, with Councilman Geoff Masci casting the lone no vote.
The water rate increase means the volume charge will rise from $1.87 to $2.06 per 1,000 gallons.
The sewage rate will climb from $2.88 to $3.17 per 1,000 gallons.
Water and sewer also have base fees based on the size pipes connected to a home or business. Those fees also will rise.
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The rest of the story appears in Wednesday’s Peninsula Daily News Jefferson County edition.