To the Icon editor:
You have recently [January 17] published a letter from Mr. Jamie Hall, the village administrator of Ada. I have attempted to resolve several issues I found in that letter. I have addressed them with you and the administrator and cannot get clear answers. I did get a document that included a memo with rates. This led to the discovery that commercial accounts are getting a generous discount on water. I have posited that perhaps the budget shortfall could be addressed by making residential rates and the commercial rates the same. I am going to address some potential arguments.
Water is NOT a commodity like all others. Water is ESSENTIAL for human life. This should be reason alone for it to be treated with the best interests of human beings in mind. This means the needs of people are vastly superior to the needs of commerce. I want to talk about the inability to get relevant information on the need for a rate increase.
I do not know the volume of water being used. I cannot find the information on the village website. How can a citizen know the need is real if the information is not easily obtained. How much of the use is residential? How much use is commercial? Is there historical data showing if one sector has been decreasing or increasing? What is the cause for the need? It is insufficient to say that a study said these things need to be done. People have been saying all kinds of things. I should be able to read the report and be able to decide the necessity.
I would like to be able to see the relevant information to decide for myself if a rate increase is needed. I need to see the numbers involved to determine if the generous discount to commercial accounts was removed would resolve the debts Mr. Hall claims as the reason for the increase. Water and air are two things people need to live. The cost to distribute and maintain water should be the same for all consumers. Water is precious. Rates should be constructed to promote conservation. They should not be constructed to ease a cost burden for industry. The rates need to be constructed for the benefit of people.
I will be at the next meeting. I seek answers to the questions I have. I hope my neighbors do too.
Kevin Wagner
Ada, Ohio
Editor's note: The current Village of Ada ordinance establishing two water rates based on volume can be found at https://codelibrary.amlegal.com/codes/ada/latest/ada_oh/0-0-0-15775
