Agenda Highlights 1/31/23

At the Fort Smith Board of Directors meeting to be held 1-31-23, the Board will vote on a whether or not to partner with Arcbest to paint the water tower near the Arcbest headquarters on McClure Drive. The water tower was installed in 2006 and has not been repainted, yet it is recommended for towers to be repainted every 10-15 years. It is best to repaint towers when water demand is low, so February would be ideal for starting the project. Also, that would coordinate well with Arcbest’s planned centennial celebration. Under the partnership, the usual bidding process would be bypassed and Arcbest would pay $383,670 for Viking Industrial Painting to paint the tower inside and out and include ArcBest anniversary logos on the outside (the logos themselves cost $12,000 of the total $383,670 price). Then the City would reimburse ArcBest for that entire painting cost and then over the next 10 years Arcbest would share regular cleaning and maintenance costs for the tower 50/50 (up to $15,000).

Then the Board will have a discussion regarding a potential water rate study. Arkansas Act 605 requires that a rate study be submitted to the Arkansas Natural Resources Commission by June 30, 2026 and it will be mandatory that the rate increases recommended by that study are imposed within a year of the study being submitted if the increases will be less than 50% and within 2 years if the increases will be over 50%.

The City is allowed to do a rate study of its own volition at any point in time before June 30, 2026 and does not need to submit it to the state before the deadline. So if a study were conducted sooner, the City could use the results for its own purposes without needing to submit it to the State early or being forced to enact the mandatory rate increase the State would require at that time. A study could be used to provide better information to make plans and find solutions. Aside from impending Act 605 related concerns, it is generally recommended that rate studies be conducted every 5 years to account for things like growth and inflation.

Then the Board will review the current water and sewer fees and discuss possible changes to the fees. Many of the proposed changes to be discussed are increased and additional fees. Some of the notable proposed changes include increasing the account activation fee from $30 to $50, increasing the reconnection fee from $30 to $75, instituting an $8 fee for customers who have paper bills mailed to them instead of only receiving emailed bills, increasing the deposit required for hydrant meters used for construction from $150 to $5000, instituting a $100 fee for missing or broken locks on meters that have been disconnected for non-payment, dramatic increases in fees for water tap installation for new construction, instituting a $1500 fee for meter tap closure, instituting a $50 fee for meter inspection if a customer asks for an inspection and it turns out there is nothing wrong with the meter, instituting a $100 meter testing fee if the customer requests a meter test and it turns out the meter is not reading improperly, increased sewer tap fees for new construction, instituting fees to close a sewer tap, instituting fees pertaining to Fat Oil and Grease generators and haulers, starting imposing fees on other utility contractors who damage City water and sewer lines while digging to install their utilities, and ending the winter averaging (charging the actual sewer usage all year, so customers that want to water their lawns might want an irrigation meter and irrigation account).