Water supplier seeks rate hike

If you want clean, clear, quality water, you’re going to have to pay for it.

That’s the message Long Island American Water President William Varley delivered to area residents earlier this month when he explained the company’s 19.5 percent rate hike proposal.

“I understand no one likes a rate increase,” Varley said, “but I’ve got to continue to invest in the system to meet the water quality standards and to meet the demands of the customer, and that’s what we’re doing.”

Village of Lawrence Mayor Martin Oliner said he is trying to resist the proposed increase in every way possible and met with Varley last week to come up with other alternatives. “The water in the village is totally unacceptable,” Oliner said. “There is so much iron in it that it’s discoloring pools and ruining heaters. I’d like to replace them all together.”

Oliner added that he’s been working with county legislators to see if Lawrence can find an alternative water company and if not, he would like LIAW to lessen the amount of iron in the water they’re currently supplying. “They should not be having any increases at all,” he said. “The water isn’t useable, drinkable water. I wouldn’t mind paying them if they gave us water we could use.”

In Cedarhurst, Village Clerk Treasurer Salvatore Evola said the proposed rate hike means more money coming out of the village’s budget. Evola added that Cedarhurst is obligated to pay rental for 108 fire hydrants and currently budgets $73,800 for them.

“If the proposed rate hike passes, that will mean we’ll need another $15,000 for the fire hydrant rentals,” Evola said. “This is a tremendous amount of money.”

Long Island American Water has been continuously investing in improvements and upgrades to the area’s aging infrastructure in order to meet state and federal requirements, Varley said, and now it has to recoup some of its investment funds through a rate increase. The last time LIAW filed for a rate increase, which is granted for a three-year period, was 2007: the company was eligible to file for a rate increase last year, but did not: “We said, we control our expenses, we’ll stay out another year,” Varley said, adding that now it has become unsustainable and an increase is necessary.