Wichita poised for more water, sewer rate increases in 2023 if council approves plan
More rate increases are on the horizon for Wichita water and sewer customers if the City Council approves proposed increases Tuesday.
The proposal calls for a 6.25% increase in water rates and a 3% hike in sewer services for a combined increase of 4.95%. The new rates would go into effect Jan. 1.
Annual increases of roughly 5% have been the norm over the last few years as the city continues work on the new $553 million Northwest Water Treatment Facility, which Public Works and Utilities Director Alan King has said will be completed by the end of 2024 or early 2025.
Construction is also expected to begin next year on a biological nutrient removal project, a $357 million upgrade to the city’s aging sewer system.
The water treatment facility and sewer project are the two most expensive infrastructure projects undertaken in city history.
The city secured $280.9 million in federal funding for the water treatment center. A loan through the Environmental Protection Agency’s Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) could pay for up to 49% of the sewer project.
A city analysis completed over the summer projected that the city will need to spend $855.8 million in capital improvements on its water system and $475.3 million on its wastewater system in the next 10 years.
Under the city’s 10-year projected rate plan, Wichitans can expect combined water and sewer rate hikes of roughly 5% from 2023 through 2028 and roughly 4% increases from 2029 through 2032.
