County Softens Mobile-Home Sewer Bills

Most people wouldn’t greet a 100 percent increase in sewer bills with relief.

Leonard Bouge did.

Bouge, the owner of Birch Tree Mobile Home Park in the Valley, was informed by an April letter from county officials that the park’s sewer bills would increase 262 percent starting the following month.

County commissioners on Tuesday voted to soften the increase, and delay it until next February. The decision affects Bouge’s mobile home park and three others in the Valley that are connected to county sewers.

The steep original increase reflected a proposed change in the way the county computes bills for mobile home parks.

The parks are billed like commercial customers, based on the water they use during a typical winter month. Utility officials say that’s unfair, since it results in lower bills than those paid by other residential customers, including apartment complexes and condominiums.

Rates vary from park to park, but the $4.05 collected from each home in Bouge’s park is typical under the commercial rate, said county utilities Director Bruce Rawles.

By comparison, other residential customers pay $15.60 a month.

Under commissioners’ decision, the parks will be charged a “modified commercial rate” that will vary from park to park.

In Bouge’s park, the bill should be about $9.56 a month for each mobile home, depending on water use.

The 32 tenants of Meadowbrook Village Mobile Home Park in the Valley will see their average rates increase from about $6.46 per month to about $12.31.

The rates at Valley Breeze park will go from an average of $4.72 to about $9. Rates were not available for the Valley’s Americana park.

Sewer bills are paid by park owners, but the cost is passed on to tenants, Bouge said.

, DataTimes