By Jesse Murphy

Rock Port Board of Aldermen met on Wednesday, June 18. One of the top pieces on the agenda was to hear a presentation from Mike Klosek regarding a proposed idea to include a $15 fee for trash service on city residents’ water bills.

Some city members in attendance spoke up regarding the issue, pointing out that not every place in town with water service are residential, therefore some customers would be paying for a service they don’t need. Another concern was possible future rate increases.

One person asked if someone theoretically didn’t pay the trash part of their bill, would the city cut off their other utilities billed through the city.

Mayor JR Chaney said effectively that non-payments will still be treated the same, but some exceptions can be made for land that receives water but wouldn’t need trash – commercial businesses and meters used for agriculture can not be billed. As far as service being turned off, he said that would be a question for the city attorney.

He also said that a big part of the agreement would include rate locks, dumpsters and clean-up days, along with metal drop-off days.

“Looking at most of the towns in the area, they all have trash on their water bill,” Chaney said. “Part of the reason is that it’s what is best for the people that live in the city. We have to make a decision on what’s best for everyone, not just the outliers.”

The issue is tabled until Klosek comes to a meeting to speak to the council about details on the contract.

After the retirement earlier this month of Terri McGuire, no one has been named yet, but the aldermen did go into executive session at the end of the normal meeting to discuss personnel.

Late fees on utility bills was raised by Chaney, who presented numbers showing that Rock Port’s $20 plus 10 percent charge is more than double most other towns in the region. There is also a $25/$25 disconnect/reconnect fee.

He mentioned that this would be a loss of about $8,000 to $10,000 annually. This ordinance has been in place for roughly 15 years, and Chaney suggested it was almost a poor tax.

After discussion about giving people who just don’t pay on time versus those who simply can’t, the board eventually voted to drop the $20 and only charge the 10 percent while keeping the lower-than-average $25/$25. An ordinance will be drafted to be approved.

In other business, the final details of this year’s Independence Day events were settled, with the show at dusk on July 3. All attendees who plan to drink must purchase a wrist band at the main entrance, and all alcohol must be kept away from any children’s activities.

A business license for Angle & Hive was approved, and the city is going to look into grants to purchase more blinking signs to help slow down traffic on certain streets.

Alexa VanSickle was appointed to the Rock Port Tourism Board on a 3-1 vote and Cynthia Burton was put on the Rock Port Park Board.

Jarod Hudson gave the superintendent’s report. Street work is moving along as scheduled, with Liberty Lane coming up soon. They will be getting estimates for the lots at the park, too. They are currently working on an updated maintenance plan and searching to fill extra duties at the park, possibly a current employee. They are also still working on two pumps that are currently down.

The board’s next meeting will be at 6:00 p.m. on July 16.