By Chris Cooper-Managing Editor chriscndl@hotmail.com

A sewer surcharge Municipal Order was passed at Tuesday night’s Russellville City Council meeting with a unanimous vote from the council.

The $5 surcharge per month per household for one year came to the council’s table in late October. Council’s reasoning for the charge was to generate more money to operate the city’s sewer department, which is running low on funding for the budgeted year.

Councilman Gene Zick, who spearheaded the charge, had said it would be better to have a surcharge added for one year than to raise the sewer rates by ordinance.

He had said at a previous meeting that he and the committee reviewed the need for funding in the sewer account. He said when the Kentucky Rural Water Association prepared the city’s water and sewer rate study in April and May they had recommended an increase in the sewer rates then. The council did not follow their recommendations, thinking it would generate a good deal of money from Waste Management, which was bringing lechate to the city for treatment. Zick said since this didn’t come to fruition, and the department is experiencing a shortfall.

Apparently, the May 31, 2005 budget estimated $528,268 revenue from the lechate. But because Waste Management has made several improvements, according to Zick, and the necessary rainfall which generates lechate has been low the city is not receiving lechate any longer.

If the city had followed the Kentucky Rural Water Association’s recommended increase, customers would have seen a change from $6.23 per 1,000 gallons to $8.23 per 1,000 gallons. With the surcharge Zick calculated the difference to be from $6.23 per 1,000 gallons to $7.81 per 1,000 gallons. Zick had said that the surcharge will be eliminated in one year unless the council feels it necessary to continue the charge.

A resolution was passed which called for the removal of stop signs at the northeast and southwestern sides of the intersection on Depot, Hopkinsville and West Fourth streets Other changes include; removing a large bush at the southwestern side of the intersection and painting curbs yellow on both sides of Depot Street for distances of 30 feet.

The stop sign at the southeast side of the intersection would remain but stop bars will be painted at this location.

According to the resolution, these changes will make this intersection like it has been in the past because with lack of traffic there is no need to make this intersection a three-way stop.

The resolution was sponsored by Councilman Jack Whipple and passed with a unanimous vote by the city council.