Water Rates To Increase CITY WILL ISSUE REVENUE BONDS

PRAIRIE GROVE — Prairie Grove City Council began the process at its February meeting to issue around $2.5 million in bonds to pay for major improvements to the water treatment plant.

The council approved a resolution to reimburse the city with bond proceeds for expenses that occur before the bonds are issued. The resolution also authorizes city officials to work with the city’s bond counsel, Friday, Eldredge & Clark, to prepare documents necessary to issue and sell water revenue bonds.

According to the Water Department’s master plan, the city’s 40-yearold water plant would go off-line in 2017. Council members have been discussing how to meet the city’s future water needs based on this timeline. Currently, about 44 percent of water used in Prairie Grove comes from the treatment plant on Prairie Grove Lake, while 56 percent comes from Benton/Washington Regional Public Water Authority (commonly known as Two Ton because of the last syllables in the names of the counties it serves), which supplies treated water from Beaver Lake.

Larry Oelrich, director of Administrative Services and Public Works, gave aldermen two options: purchase all water from Two Ton, or renovate the current plant.

Oelrich recommended renovating the plant and aldermen, in November, gave their OK to proceed with this proposal. Two advantages of keeping the water plant, Oelrich said, are that the city already owns the lake, which produces 1.5 million gallons per day, and the city would continue to have two sources of water.

Oelrich said the council probably would consider an ordinance to issue bonds at its April or May meeting and bonds would be sold possibly in May or June. Bond counsel is working on the documents now, Oelrich said.

“They are watching the interest rates closely,” he said.

The city will overhaul the water plant, including electrical, equipment and installing new treatment units. The project should take less than six months to complete.

To retire the new debt, the city will increase water rates. Oelrich did not know when a rate increase would go into effect. Water bills would go up about $6 per month for an average customer using 4,500 gallons of water per month.

In other action at its Feb. 23 meeting, the council approved a resolution endorsing the Northwest Arkansas Regional Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan and adopted an individual bike/walk plan for Prairie Grove. The Master Plan, which comes from North- west Arkansas Regional Planning Commission, is the result of public meetings and public comments from more than 800 citizens during the past year.

Aldermen also approved a low bid of $130,823 for a new 2015 sanitation truck from Truck Center of Arkansas in North Little Rock and amended sanitation rates for apartments. It allows a senior citizen rate of $ 8.50 per month for apartment residents who are 65 or older and requires complex managers or owners to be responsible for keeping a central refuse area clean and free of excess trash.

The council adopted an ordinance that requires organizations or groups who are canvassing within city limits to register with City Hall and pick up a No Knock List, a list of residents who do not want anyone coming to their house to sell a service or product or solicit information. Canvassers usually are people asking questions or conducting surveys dealing with politics or religion.

The city’s current solicitation ordinance does not require canvassers to register. Alderman Casey Copeland voted against this ordinance. In a previous meeting, Copeland said he did not want to restrict someone’s right to religion or free speech.

In addition, council members placed an ordi- nance on first reading that assesses a new fee for customers who connect to the city water system for fire protection. The monthly connection fee depends on the size of the line and varies from $25 per month to $100 per month.