Good work with Holmdel’s new sewer rate calculations Letter to The Editor Posted:06/24/09
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I wish to recognize the overdue improvement to Holmdel Township's calculation of residential sewer bills starting in 2009. This year Holmdel's Sewer Department obtained winter water usage data for each resident from the local water company and used it to calculate each resident's quarterly sewer bill, beginning with those bills due this June. This is a fair and effective resolution to the historical over-charging of residents who are modest users of water and sewer resources.
This is good that the Holmdel administration is becoming more aware of residents' interests with respect to sewer charges. Several years back, residential sewer users were treated as "cash cows" by the current Holmdel Township Committee majority, which removed around $2 million from the sewer surplus fund to subsidize other Township expenses. But due to the leadership of Township Committeeman Larry Fink, the residential sewer rates driving that surplus were generally recognized as excessive, and those rates were correspondingly reduced.
Further improvements in Holmdel's administration of residential sewer charges are still needed. Those Holmdel neighborhoods with sewers installed over 40 years ago have fully repaid their sewer construction bonds. However, repayment of sewer bonding debt is still factored into sewer bills for the residents of those neighborhoods. This is another unfair situation that should be more widely recognized and corrected.
