Town Council Moves to Give Johnstown Residents the Water Service They Deserve

Town Council, on recommendation by Town Staff, have made a move towards better water and sewer services for residents by approving a rate increase.

Johnstown, CO – December 9, 2020 – Effective January 2021, the Town of Johnstown will begin using a new utility billing rate structure for both water and sewer services. The new rate structure includes new customer classifications as well as new rates. For residential customers the new water base rate will be $21.53 and usage rates will apply on a tiered basis with the first 5,000 gallons charged starting at $3.00 per thousand. The residential sewer rate will be $31.56 with no usage charges (flat fee). The increases will be reflected on all customer bills beginning at the end of January 2021.

“The decision to increase rates was carefully reviewed and recommended for changes based on our need and obligation to operate, maintain, and improve the current water and wastewater systems,” said Matt LeCerf, Town Manager. “More importantly though, we have to meet or exceed community expectations. These changes will allow us to achieve these objectives expressed to us by the community.”

The Town of Johnstown uses its best efforts in controlling its costs in order to keep rates as low as possible. The rate increases were approved as part of multi-year plans to upgrade the systems to meet, both, the expectations of the community, by providing high quality drinking water, and the environmental and state mandated requirements of the Federal Clean Water Act. Historically, Johnstown residents have been paying less in water and sewer rates than surrounding municipalities and, while this rate increase is larger than residents have seen in the past, it puts Johnstown residents at about the same rates as other area municipalities of similar size.

The Water Fund multi-year plan includes several critical projects including the installation of a granular activated carbon feeder to improve the taste and odor of the water. This project is scheduled to be completed in mid-Spring, 2021. A second, and equally critical project, is the addition of a new water tower on the south side of Town.

Expected to be completed close to the end of 2021, the new water tower will improve the water pressure in the system and provide additional water volume during peak summer water demands. Finally, to improve water quality and to meet high use times (peak water demands) on the system, the Town will begin working on engineering design to expand the water treatment plant with construction scheduled to start in 2022.

The Sewer Fund multi-year sewer plan includes upgrades to both sewer treatment plants to ensure compliance with environmental regulations which have been difficult to meet, especially considering the age of the facilities and the periodic changes to discharge regulations as amended by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE). In order to meet regular permit requirements, both facilities require significant construction projects.

Ultimately, the new rate structure will allow the Town to provide current residents with the water and sewer service that they deserve.

View the rate increase in the new 2021 fee schedule by clicking here. (Sewer - pg. 7 and Water - pg. 9)

If you are interested in learning more about how Town Funds work, click here. 

Our Public Works Projects web page will also continue to be updates as water and sewer capital projects start, progress, and complete.