The Caldwell tribune. [volume] (Caldwell, Idaho Territory [Idaho]) 1883-1928, 1923-07-13
WATER RATE IS
RAISED TUESDAY
TO $3.50 COST
Council Tuesday Night
Authorizes Increase;
Plan Long Considered
Need More Funds.

Take Sl.50 with you to pay your
August city water bill.
Tuesday night, the city council
passed an ordinance increasing the
minimum rate from Sl.00 to the new
figure and the ordinance goes into ef-
feet with its publication. elsewhere in
this issue OF The Tribune.
This step. long contemplated by
various recent city administrations,
was enacted Tuesday that this depart
ment OF the city might be placed on a
business basis. The new rate, it was
formally announced at the city hall
Wednesday, has absolutely no rela-
tionship to the defeat of the FIVE mill
additional levy plan, having been def
initely decided upon prior to the pub
lie meeting which placed the city in
an embarrassing financial position.
1T is purely business proposition"
S. Earle Boyes, city clerk, explained
Wednesday. while this department
has been earning enough to pay its or
binary overhead, the income was not
sufficient to retire bonds or provide a
sinking fund to replace water mains
which are rapidly deteriorating. In
brief, the department was operating
on basis that no private business
could hope to long exist upon. 1t was
only question of a short time until
the city would be compelled to ask
for bond election to replace and ex-
tend the water system under the old
rate. The new rate will probably
make the department entirely self
sustaining.
Caldwell at present has l04l active
water meters. These meters, paying
:, the new rate, will increase the rev.
enue of the department between 5000
and $1,000 per annum. Already, old
water mains have so nearly served
their term of usefulness that it is es-
timated about $4,000 will be neces-
sary to replace them.
Hand in hand with the increased
rate goes the plan for replacing old
mains and repairing the water system
generally. The city council Tuesday
evening informally determined that IA
blocks from Kimball avenue to 22nd
street should be the first where old
wooden mains are to be replaced with
cast iron. Cost of this improvement
has not been determined. Accumu-
lations in the department over a num-
Der of years amount to about $4OOO
and this sum will probably be used for
foundation upon which to finance
such work. Old mains have been a
source of constant vexation and cx-
pense to the city recently because OF
frequent breaks. This fact has long
been regarded as something Of men,
ace because OF the increased fire haz-
ard.
Rates have not been changed cx-
cept for the minimum OF $l.s0. This
sum pays for 667 cubic feet, or 5000
gallons of water. The sliding rate
above the minimum is exactly as IT
was before the increase went into et-
feet. The minimum water which will
cost Caldwell residents $l.s0, costs
$50 TO the Nampa consumer.
Caldwell citizens have long en-
joyed the cheapest water in Idaho.
Under the new rate, the same amount
that costs $l.s0 in Caldwell will cost
Nampa residents $40. Caldwell wa
ter rates have not been increased for
years. City water went through the
war rise in prices without being boost
ed and it was not until the existing
water system reached a point where
had to be done that .he in
crease was finally adopted as the log
cal solution of vexing problem.