— by Margie Doyle, updated at 7 p.m. —
Business owners who are members of the Eastsound Water Users Association (EWUA) attended the EWUA board meeting on Tuesday night, May 17 to protest the increase in the tiered water rates that went into effect this April.
The board, after hearing input from the group, agreed to defer one portion of the “rate hike” for high-water users which exceed their monthly allotments.
EWUA Chair Brian Ehrmantraut said, “We removed the two newly-imposed top tiers for excessive surplus water use from the rate structure for six months while we study the problem and work with our high-use members who perceived a fairness issue and were facing economic hardship during the summer season from the new rates.
“These tiers had applied to all water users, commercial and residential. The previous single tier charge for water use over [the] base allotment was retained – this charge has been there for years, and again, applies to all users.”
Ehrmantraut added, “Please note – this does *not* mean everyone can use unlimited amounts of water during the summer, and the board and staff will be working with our higher-use customers during this period. There may need to be other actions taken to protect our water resources if excessive use continues.”
The rate hike, which was agreed upon by the board in February, was announced at that time to all EWUA members, and a specific letter sent out to the business members who would be directly affected, said Paul Kamin, EWUA Manager. A proposal to roll back the increased April charges was brought up, but not acted upon by the board at the May 17 meeting.
At the meeting Christopher Peacock, Manager at Rosario Resort, said, “I believe commercial members are being penalized to subsidize the ability for EWUA to supply new water memberships for the growth of Eastsound.
“I do not believe anyone in this group disagrees with paying their fair share, but the key word is “fair.””
In the letter sent to EWUA members last February, Kamin wrote, “An outcome of last summer’s drought is the addition of two new “surplus water” tiers to our rate structure. The majority of EWUA’s members do not experience surplus water charges. The water included with their base rate is adequate for most users. Surplus water rates are charged only if a service exceeds their base allotment.
“Study of water meter data showed that in Eastsound a small group of high water users were responsible for a surprising portion of overall water use. EWUA’s top 10% of commercial users were responsible for 50% of overall commercial water use. The top 7% of residential users were responsible for 28% of residential water use.
“The goal of these new water tiers is to “encourage” our highest users to examine their water use, and take advantage of conservation opportunities.
“EWUA will be contacting each member who is likely to experience increased water bills as a result of the new surplus water tiers and review with them their options for reducing their water use and minimizing their water bills. The new rates go into effect starting with the April billing.”
Also in attendance at the Tuesday night meeting were Mike Stolmeier, Jim Nelson, Ginni Hawker, Theron Soderquist, Clyde Duke, and Sarah Farish, among others.
Mike Stolmeier questioned whether it was wise to sell memberships at this point. “Business owners have been given the burden of the aggressive water rate schedule to drive conservation, but some operations need water. Can we comfortably serve those members we’ve already got?” He asked about how many EWUA memberships are active and how many are inactive in the EWUA’s water system plan. (Residential memberships provide one “ERU,” which stands for equivalent residential unit measurement of water,which translates to 5,000 gallons of water per month. Commercial memberships have 1.75 ERUs and some businesses have multiple ERUs).
Later Stolmeier, who serves as Eastsound Sewer and Water District Commissioner, said, “The rationale of the water system design is that everyone can be defined in ERUs; that’s the cause of the problem now of the growth of Orcas Island into a limited water system.
“The question is whether, in its current configuration, EWUA can meet its water requirements.”
He described the 2016 tiered rate structure as an attempt to address the water shortages of last summer. “What the association really needs to do is to stand back and suspend new memberships and address its ability to deliver water at peak season to its existing members.
“I’m very proud of the board and management for the sincere and non-defensive way they’re handling the problem of water supply.”
Clyde Duke, owner of the Orcas Athletic Club and other properties, told the board “This is a unique situations. I absolutely have a bias, timing is critical, clearly there’s a disconnect. The board can’t be happy with this outcome because it’s a problem and we’re going to need to fix it.”
EWUA board member Fred Klein said, “These are legitimate questions about how we operate. It is essential that we get people to understand what we’re up against; and how we’re trying to be fair and equitable.”
Near the conclusion of the two-hour meeting, attorney Tom Pors. who with Peacock was representing the owner of Coho Lodge in Bartwood Estates, outlined the case for the inequity of the new rate structure. Pors maintained that the ERU system adopted over 30 years ago created the problem when the EWUA set 1.75 ERUs for commercial entities as the standard, corresponding to 8,750 gallons per month. “That became a far more significant problem with the tiered rate structure introduced this spring.”
Pors challenged both the 2016 and previous years’ rate structures, describing them as being used to encourage the sale of more ERUs. Pors said, “You’re taking away capacity from members who’ve paid for it.” The EWUA should be “assigning ERUs without charge to make the rate structure fair” to those who have long held purchased memberships, Pors maintained.
Ehrmantraut asked if such a scenario were implemented, would it imply that membership purchase came with an unlimited amount of water? Pors commended the board for its efforts to resolve the dilemma amicably, and spelled out two possible solutions:
- add ERUs without charge
- increase the capacity of ERUs
Pors observed “a disconnect between the board and commercial members.” He urged both groups to have open minds about the problem and suggested, “EWUA may have to pay for a rate study…. and an expansion of the correct number of ERUs to have the tiered structure work properly.”
He suggested any meetings of a proposed “working group” should include goals of expressing EWUA concerns about increased water usage and member concerns about fairness.
Klein agreed that discussions by a group to address the rate/usage situation would need to define basic terms and numbers, and the problem to be solved. Later, Klein said, “The Board intends to invite members to participate in an open conversation to engage a question, something along the lines of:
‘How can the costs of operating and maintaining our local water system be shared equitably and fairly among the membership of the Eastsound Water Users’ Association?’
Christopher Peacock said following the meeting, “I’m glad they made the decision they made because the previous decision had a tremendous impact on business owners and we don’t understand the goal [of that decision]. We hope to be a part of the process to come to a resolution about it.
“A key concern as a commercial property owner, is being told water usage is increasing and we need to conserve,” Peacock said. He said that the water usage increase last summer is due to increased business now that the economy is in recovery from the 2008 downturn. “Water usage dropped, but it’s now creeping back.” He agreed with other business owners that they have taken many measures to conserve water consumption.
EWUA Manager Paul Kamin said he would prepare a study of the impacts of the 2016 rate structure for the June 22 EWUUA board meeting. Members of the EWUA board in attendance were Bill Burlew, Brian Ehrmantraut, Fred Klein, and Dan Vekved. Absent was Patrick Shepler.
i don’t understand why people are in an uproar over this but not opalco. who keeps raising the rates. the monthly charge used to be 28 a month and now its 40! its getting ridiculous!
Actually, the members of the community should be paying attention to all of the various utility costs and taxes that are necessary sources of revenue to allow those agencies to provide services to everyone.
Notably, the co-op agencies seem to have the least oversight and controls that protect the interests of the community. Agencies such as the School District, the Fire Dept, and Eastsound Sewer are tightly controlled by State law. By comparison, the co-operatives seem to have little oversight and are self-regulated. That never seems to end well for the taxpayers.
In the context of rapidly increasing rates for utility services, it is being suggested that OPALCO become a PUD , public utility district, like in Snohomish County, and that EWUA be absorbed by the Sewer and Water District. Hmmmmm, food for thought !!!
It seems to me is what can we do to be aware in our day to day life to use what we have wisely ? what things can we plant,and how can we be aware of our individual usage of water, power ect. If first we become aware of our part in the whole process then perhaps that is where change occurs.