Director Linda Lindsey, Garrett County Department of Public Utilities, on Tuesday presented the county commissioners with her calculated ad valorem tax rates for water and sewer service in the Garrett County Sanitary District for fiscal year 2014.
Rates for Bloomington water, Chestnut Ridge sewer, Deer Park water and sewer, Friendsvile water and sewer, Keysers Ridge water, Meadow Mountain sewer, and Mtn. Lake Park/Loch Lynn sewer customers will remain at their current rates.
Lindsey plans to increase the Deep Creek Lake sewer ad valorem tax rate from $.06 to $.07.
“The ad valorem tax rate is based [in part] on the assessed valuation of the properties within the service area boundaries,” she explained about the increased. “There was a decrease in some of the assessments, and then an additional cost for the loan refinancing that we recently conducted. We consolidated all of the [Deep Creek Lake] Sanitary District’s debt.”
The Jennings sewer rate will increase from $.13 to $0.22.
“That’s due to additional expenses for constructing the main line sewage pump station on the conveyance line from Jennings to the Chestnut Ridge area,” Lindsey explained. “That money – $1,000 – was borrowed to do that.”
McHenry water customers will see a $.01 increase.
“It goes from $.04 to $.05, and that is due to the loan refinancing of the previous USDA loan and M&T construction loan,” the director said.
The Mtn. Lake Park/Loch Lynn water rate will go from $.02 to $.05.
“That [increase] is based on the debt incurred for the new the water treatment plant, new 500,000 gallon water storage tank, the new wells for the new water source, and distribution system rehabilitation that’s been undertaken,” Lindsey said.
The rate for the new Thayerville water system will be $.20.
“That’s based on the new construction of the system that’s ongoing at this time,” the director said.
