A planned rate increase by the Bath Water District will mean the town of Woolwich will soon be paying a little more than what was budgeted for fire protection.

Mike Sinton, town representative to the Bath Water District, broke the news to the selectmen at their July 20 meeting. The cost for fire protection, sometimes referred to as “hydrant rental,” will eventually rise 8.9 percent. Residential users served by BWD will see a 12-percent increase in their water bill. 

Lynette Eastman, Woolwich administrator, said she received notification of BWD’s proposed increase a few weeks prior to the May town meeting. Although the new fire protection rate hadn’t been finalized, the water district had projected an increase of no more than 5 percent. This year’s fire protection appropriation of $16,351 to the BWD was based on that percentage. Eastman estimated the shortfall in that account at $540.

Woolwich is somewhat distinctive in that it pays fire protection monies to both the BWD and the Wiscasset Water District. This is because both districts provide water services to the town.

Reached for comment Friday morning, Aug. 6, Trevor Hunt, BWD superintendent, said the new Woolwich rates take effect on Sept. 1.

Next year fire protection will cost $17,903, an 8.9 percent increase. Hunt explained that because of the timing in relationship to the municipal budget cycle, this year’s increase rounds down to 6.7 percent.

In 2014, Woolwich paid BWD $15,511 for fire protection, 12 hydrants at $1,292 each, as detailed in the town report.

Hunt said while it’s common to break this down to the cost per hydrant, the number of hydrants is only one factor in calculating the total fire protection charge. It also allows BWD “to recover stranded costs for all the related infrastructure including pumps, large-size pipe, tanks, etc,” he said.

According to Hunt, BWD has a total of 3,852 customers; of those, 150 have a Woolwich address.

“We have many rental properties through our entire system and the ‘customer’ is the landlord. For example, the Woolwich school as part of RSU 1 is a Bath customer,” he explained. “We most likely serve a population of 650 individuals on a regular basis in Woolwich with the school and the commercial customers included,” he added.

BWD rates will increase 12 percent on Sept. 1 for residential, commercial and industrial customers. The district’s last rate increase came in August 2010.

Hunt gave the reason for the rate increase as declining water use by the customer base resulting in declining revenues. He said this reduction of revenues comes at a time when the district is continuing with a “modest program of infrastructure improvements.”

The new fire protection rate will be closer to what the town pays to the WWD, which is listed in the town report as$18,368 for 13 hydrants at $1,413 each.

“Any increase no matter how big or small affects the (tax) rate in some way,” Eastman said. She added that the school and county budgets have both risen over last year while monies the town receives in state revenues have fallen off.

“Our assessing agent expressed her concern to me that there hasn’t been any major new value to pick up on town properties,” she said.

One bright note is that the town could realize a savings of over $35,000 in its solid waste disposal costs with the start of the Pay Per Bag program. The program is set to begin in September.