Proposed Carmel Water Treatment Plant Would Be Irresponsible
Opinion Advocates for ideas and draws conclusions based on the author/producer’s interpretation of facts and data.
I and other residents of Carmel Water District No. 2 and the Hamlet of Carmel wish to thank Councilman Robert Kearns for his responsible and courageous action to temporarily suspend approval of more than $24 million in bond obligations for construction of a new district water treatment plant.
It is important to understand the bonds would be paid solely by the 1,500 homeowners in the district with no contributions made by the town, county or state. When added to the existing water district taxes, plus individual usage fees, it is probable that the average household would pay around $2,000 or more annually for municipal water service (This does not include sewer service.) The total water project debt for EACH household would be $36,000.
The project hold is not opposition to the concept of a new water plant (one of the largest infrastructure projects in the town’s history) but instead an opportunity to conduct comprehensive due diligence to ensure that the design, scope and borrowing need is appropriate.
The original project proposal was issued over four years ago and left to rot somewhere in Town Hall. Therefore, the information on which project recommendations were made is fatally outdated and needs to be revised.
But for some shadowy reason the outdated proposal is now being shoved down the throats of unsuspecting Carmel Water District No. 2 households by the rest of the Town Board, the same board that did nothing for those years while inflation ballooned the cost estimate and bond interest rates rose by 200 percent. So what strings are being pulled now and by whom?
Since none of the board members live in Carmel Water District No. 2, they have no problem irresponsibly putting already overtaxed and inflation-bruised district households into deeper and possibly unnecessary debt.
Again, the question must be asked: Why now?
John Butler
Carmel
Examiner Media – Keeping you informed with professionally-reported local news, features, and sports coverage.