MIDLAND COUNTY, Texas — Bills. We all have to pay them for a number of services, including water and sewer. When they begin to challenge affordable living they can become problematic, and that’s the case for one subdivision near Greenwood.
People of the Vander Ranch subdivision say they’ve experienced sewer and chlorine issues this year, and as Park Water Company attempts to raise their water and sewer rate, homeowners are protesting.
Vander Ranch residents are not throwing money down the drain, although for them it may feel that way.
“I know I’m paying around $300 a month already right now just on the existing water," said Mike Matison, a concerned resident of Vander Ranch.
“Most of these people here can’t afford the water bill that they have, much less be able to afford a rate increase," said Shannon Baucom, another concerned resident of Vander Ranch. “They’re wanting to raise rates again. Of course, they try to sneak it by us, but we caught onto it and we’ve been able to protest it. So, we’re hoping we can get it stopped.”
For what that dollar amount might look like, Rick Chittum has seen the math.
“They’re wanting to raise the rate on the base rate on water to $170 a month, the base rate on sewer to $130 – so roughly $300 a month – and then $15.05 per thousand gallons for water," said Chittum, a concerned resident of Vander Ranch. "Average water bill you figure is between 7,000 and 10,000 gallons, so you’re talking water bills in the range of $500 to $700 every month. Basically, they’re doubling our water bill.”
Residents have also had to deal with a sewer system they say is not big enough.
“According to the TCEQ, it’s not adequate enough for as many homes it’s being used for," Baucom said. "To solve the problem, they would have to build more sewage stations, or make a bigger one, because it wasn’t meant to handle that many homes.”
As homeowners pay their bills, they want clarity about the operations.
“We’d like to kind of just found out what’s going on and what’s the plan, and if it’s not up to standard, when and how will they get it up there and not have any issues," Matison said.
Park Water Company provided NewsWest 9 with the following statement:
We are unaware of any billing issues and work directly with the Public Utility Commission – Texas to address any billing inquiries. We also continue to work diligently with TCEQ, for matters involving our wastewater treatment plant.