The Sioux Center City Council discussed potential increases in wastewater rates to help make some key improvements to the collection system: pipes and pumps that move wastewater across Sioux Center. The increase will also help ensure Sioux Center’s system meets wastewater permit requirements set by the state.
A long-term wastewater rate study projected rate increases are necessary to pay for the needed changes.
“As a community-owned utility, our wastewater collection system and treatment plant are paid for by the people who use them,” Utilities Manager Murray Hulstein said. “This rate increase is an investment in the long-term strength of our wastewater collection system for us and for the next generation.”
The planned improvements, designed to alleviate stress in the center core of Sioux Center and provide capacity for continued development, include two upgraded lift stations, a new forcemain along 12th St. NE, and a new forcemain along 13th Ave. E toward the wastewater plant.
The City Council is considering a 9% wastewater rate increase starting with usage on the January 2027 bill and a similar increase the following year. The council approved the first reading of this proposal this week and will review it at two more council meetings this fall.
For an average family of four using 3,000 gallons in a month, the 2027 proposed increase would represent about $3.62 on a monthly bill.
Sioux Center’s last wastewater rate took place in December 2023.
The City of Sioux Center’s sanitary sewer system collects and treats wastewater produced by more than 2,000 residential, commercial and industrial customers and it is paid for by user rates and fees.
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