June 23, 2009
Silver on Water Rates: 1st District Gets Special Treatment?
Oregon Hill resident Silver Persinger continues to cover AND challenge City Council. This time he takes on a topic dear to other Oregon Hill residents- water rates!
I spoke in opposition to ordinances 2009-113 and 2009-114 which exempt 836 residential water customers [ most who live in the "affluent first district," Mr. Tyler's district ] from higher water rates for having water meters larger than 5/8 inch.
DPU conducted a survey of over 200 of the 836 households and found that they all had appropriate sized meters for the type and number of water fixtures used by the customer. 93% of the 836 households [ 777 ] would have had to pay less than $20 a month additionally on their monthly water bill.
Go Silver!
The city is offering no break to the elderly and low income citizens who must pay $42/month just to be connected to the water/sewer system. This is the highest minimum water/sewer connection fee of any city in the United States. Instead the city is offering an exemption to affluent households who are using the most water.
[...] Even with the Shockoe Center proposal “dead”, the baseball stadium debate is STILL distracting Richmond citizens from other, more important priorities and issues. [...]
The recent stormwater assessment is also ridiculous. Only twenty-five more bucks to have as big a Mcmansion as you may desire!!!!
Don’t forget that the city’s minimum water/sewer bill was doubled in the 1980s to the current $42/month (the highest of any city in the U.S) to subsidize the improvements to the storm water system, including the storm water pipe that was installed in the improved canal.
Someone really needs to write a recent history of the City’s water utility.
I am sickened by the new construction on Cherry Street. Gamino once again has total disregard for the neighborhood with these huge UGLY monstrosities. The foundation is half way up my privacy fence(so much for that) The side windows will have a lovely view of my backyard. I plan extending the ugly galvanized roof to cover the back side of my shed. The city inspectors are obviously getting a payout since the steps on the previous new construction are not up to code…what a surprise!
Don’t we have a historic designation and these would no way fall in….
I am very much in accord with the person who wrote comment #7..UGLY is not strong enough a word for those boxes on the ends of Gamino’s constructions…I HOPE the new ones going up are not duplicates!
Katherina, anonymous, I have been negligent by not putting a new post up on the new construction. I will try to rectify that soon.
Oregon Hill’s state and federal historical designation do not protect from insensitive development. City historic neighborhood designation might (unless it is VCU, which does not care about that).
See this post:
http://www.oregonhill.net/2009/06/19/city-old-historic-district-public-conversation/
[...] As referenced in previous comments, Gamino is moving ahead with Phase 2 on the 500 block of S. Cherry Street. [...]
[...] As referenced in previous comments, Gamino is moving ahead with Phase 2 on the 500 block of S. Cherry Street. [...]