Toledo City Council Tuesday reviewed the controversial question of forming a regional water system that would incorporate the suburban communities that buy the city's water.
Several suburban community leaders, led mostly by Sylvania Mayor Craig Stough, have declared a desire to have a stake in the Toledo water system or they could instead build their own treatment plant to circumvent the city.
Mayor Paula Hicks-Hudson referred to the nearly three-day period in August, 2014 when Toledo's water was fouled by a toxic algae and rendered undrinkable.
"There is a need for us to look at some form of redundancy," said Mayor Hicks-Hudson, who urged council to approve a resolution supporting a new regional authority.
Councilman Lindsay Webb, who led a committee of the whole hearing today, said a rate study last year showed how costs would be charged to Toledoans and suburbanites under various scenarios, which included suburban communities building a new water treatment plant.
"We owe it to our citizens to look at a way to move toward regional development," Ms. Webb said.
"This is not easy. There is a lot of mistrust in the communities," she said.
Mayor Hicks-Hudson said communities interested in a new regional authority should first "pony up" and declare intent to move forward.
"The first hump is to see which communities are really interested in being part of this regional authority," Mayor Hicks-Hudson said.
Without a regional system, the average water rate for Toledoans would increase from $22.19 per month to $66.33 by 2024 in a scenario in which the city would no longer be able to sell water to the suburbs and have to pay the full cost of maintaining the Collins Park Water Treatment Plant, according to the 2016 rate study, which was conducted by Environmental RateConsultants, Poggemeyer Design Group, and T. Parker and Co.
A second scenario highlighted in the study showed suburban communities would pay $41.31 monthly should they build a 60-million-gallon-a-day plant and break away from the decades-old practice of buying Toledo water, for which they are charged more than city customers.
The study said building a plant would cost $679 million. The cost would inflate to $788 million in 2021, the report said.
A third scenario — forming a cooperative of suburban communities and Toledo — would mean an across-the-board $36.93 monthly water rate by 2024 for Toledo, Maumee, Sylvania, Lucas County, Wood County, Rossford, Northwood, Monroe County, Whitehouse, Perrysburg, and Fulton County, the study said.
The Lucas County commissioners last year approved a nonbinding agreement supporting a regional water system with the city of Toledo and eight other northwest Ohio and southeast Michigan communities.
Council could vote next week on the resolution.
First Published January 3, 2017, 6:32 p.m.
