Detroit City Council Votes To Increase Water Rates By 7.5 Percent

DETROIT (WWJ) - Almost exactly one year after a thousand people took to the streets to protest water service shutoffs in Detroit, City Council has voted to increase water rates by 7.5 percent.

WWJ's Charlie Langton reports that amounts to about $5 more per customer, per month; with the hike applying to all residential and commercial water customers in the city of Detroit.

Council members initially rejected the plan last month, leaving a $27 million shortfall in Detroit Water and Sewerage Department budget.

Langton said another no vote on the increase could have resulted in an extension of state oversight.

"Now many who spoke at the city council meeting said that they were concerned about affordability; that they couldn't afford the rates now — let alone an increase by seven-and-a-half percent," Langton said. "But the city discussed the fact that they were losing about $75,000 a day."

Linda Cocheck, with the group "Freedom Water Watch," asked the council to vote no on the rate increase.

"An affordability plan makes good sense. It keeps water flowing out of people's taps and revenue coming into the system," she said. "We can't afford to balance the budget of the water department on the backs of the people of the city. We need to hold DWSD accountable and force them to do better by cutting costs."

Part of that cost-cutting strategy, Cocheck said, would be ceasing to treat more water than is in demand.

The rate increase passed 5-4, with James Tate, Scott Benson, George Cushingberry Jr., Gabe Leland and Andre Spivey voting in favor. Council President Jones and council members Janee Ayers, Raquel Castaneda-Lopez and Mary Sheffield voted against the hike.

In April, the DWSD announced it was increasing the amount of financial assistance available to low-income customers with overdue bills amid a new round of water shutoffs.