There are 16 Crothersville sewer utility customers who do not have a metered water supply. As a result of the Combined Sewer Overflow rate increase earlier this year, those unmetered customers are paying a flat rate of $105.61 per month.
And, according to town council president Danieta Foster, they aren’t happy.
In the distant past, Crothersville officials established a sewer rate for utility customers without town water based on 6,000 gallons of monthly usage.
Foster said that most of those properties—primarily on south Bethany Road and Moore Street/ C.R. 600 S are 1-2 person households using 3,000 to 4,000 gallons of water per month.
At the April 6 town council meeting a public hearing was held to get public input on a proposal to lower the monthly rate for unmetered sewer customers from $105.61 to $76.51. No resident offered comment during the public hearing. As a result the council later unanimously approved an ordinance decreasing the unmetered sewer fee for those 16 property owners. The reduction will be reflected in the utility users May billing, Foster said.
The reduced rate will result in the sewer utility losing just under $6,000 a year in revenue.
Concern about semi-tractor trailers damaging streets and residents’ yards has prompted council consideration of an ordinance restricting large truck traffic to four town streets: Industrial Way, Main Street, Howard Street and Pennsylvania Avenue (along the railroad from Main to Dixon Streets).
Drivers unfamiliar with the town seem to be driving by GPS and are being given bad information, said councilman Jason Hillenburg. “They end up on streets that are too narrow and damage residents’ yards in trying to turn around or back up,” he said.
He wants to see an ordinance allowing for a $500 fine for large trucks that drive on prohibited streets.
In unanimously approving the ordinance for further consideration at their May meeting, Council President Foster said, “I want to emphasize that we are not keeping trucks out of Crothersville. We just want to direct them to Main, Howard and Industrial Way.”
The Crothersville Red, White & Blue Festival will be returning in 2021 after a year of COVID shutdown. The community festival will be held around the school grounds June 10-12, according to festival director Erica Gorbett.
She sought and was given approval for the traditional street closures of Preston from Main to Oak, Howard from Jackson to Preston.
The parade on Saturday will be following its traditional route of Bard Street to US 31 south to Moore, east to Preston and north on Preston through the festival grounds.
Bard Street Park and Bard Street will be closed Saturday night for the festival finale fireworks.
In other business the council:
•Agreed to sell a reserve police car for $500 and the town-owned golf cart for $500.
•Unanimously agreed to rescind a job offer to Joe Wooten as a police officer due to new information revealed in a background check.
•Agreed to begin to study what other communities do to govern construction of housing subdivisions as it relates to sewers, water, sidewalks, and street specifications. Councilman Jamy Greathouse, who initiated the discussion, agreed to research what other communities do and report back to the council.
•Wants to consider making a contribution to the slowly under-construction Jackson County animal shelter and paying an annual stipend if the county will accept animals from within the corporate limits of Crothersville.
