The Bangor Water District is looking to increase rates for customers by 16 percent, totaling about a $4.55 increase for the average homeowner’s monthly bill.
The district filed a request to raise water rates with the Maine Public Utilities Commission last month, according to a mailer customers received. If approved, the increase would take effect on April 1 and be the first rate hike since January 2023.
Created in 1957, the Bangor Water District is an independent municipal department that supplies water to 10,700 accounts across seven communities — Bangor, Eddington, Hampden, Hermon, Orrington and portions of Clifton and Veazie. The district also provides water to the Hampden Water District for distribution. Its largest consumers are Bangor’s Eastern Maine Medical Center and the Penobscot Energy Recovery Company in Orrington.
The proposed uptick, which would fund major infrastructure improvements to the city’s water system, would cause the average single-family home to pay 15 cents more for water each day. This would make the home’s quarterly bill to rise from $84.90 to $98.55, according to the district.
A single-person household, meanwhile, would pay about 10 cents more for water each day, causing their quarterly bill to jump from $55.30 to $64.15.
The increase would give the district an additional $1,314,139 in revenue to cover major projects, compensate for rising costs of materials and labor due fueled by inflation and maintain the water district’s workforce by offering competitive wages, according to the district.
The district cited three recent and costly infrastructure upgrades it made in the last year to continue providing safe and reliable drinking water to customers. The upgrades were necessary to replace the city’s aging water infrastructure, according to the district.
The first project was a new pump station on Corporate Drive to replace the 79-year-old station on Maine Avenue.
The district also launched the construction of a new standpipe that will consolidate Bangor’s two standpipes on Venture Way and outer Hammond Street, which are 79 years old and 60 years old, respectively.
Lastly, the district replaced slightly more than two miles of water mains in the last year, which costs about $2 million per mile to replace. Some 22 percent of the city’s 191 miles of water pipes are more than 100 years old and past their useful life.
Customers have the opportunity to ask questions and give feedback on the proposal during a public hearing at 5 p.m. Tuesday, February 20 in Bangor City Hall, which has temporarily moved to the Penquis building at 262 Harlow St.
Customers can also petition the Maine Public Utilities Commission to investigate the proposed rate increase by submitting 1,000 Bangor Water District customer signatures, with printed names and addresses, within 30 days of the public hearing.
The Bangor Water District will provide petition forms to customers upon request.
