HomeMy Public PortalAbout03-08-2011 Referral to committee restructure the fire service feeMarch 8, 2011
To: Town Manager Michael Driscoll
Council President Mark Sideris
From: Vincent Piccirilli, District C Councilor
CC: DPW Superintendent Gerald Mee
Honorable Town Council
Re: Request to restructure the fire service water fee in FY2012
As a follow up to the discussions held on the FY11 budget hearing on June 1, 2010, I would like
to restate my request for the Department of Public Works to present a volume -based fire service
charge for the Town Council's consideration in setting the FY12 water/sewer rates. Last year
this issue was raised too late in the budget process for the DPW to provide the information, so I
want to make sure that the DPW has enough advanced notice this year.
The fee is assessed for an automatic fire sprinkler connection to a building. Currently, only
residential buildings of 4 or more units require sprinklers, as do commercial buildings. The issue
is the fairness of the fee, which is currently $243 per quarter, regardless of the size of the pipe.
Thus, a 4 unit residential building with a 2" pipe is assessed the same fee as a shopping mall,
which may have an 8" pipe. The $243 fee is to guarantee the flow of unmetered water for
firefighting purposes. An 8" pipe can deliver about 16 times volume of water as a 2" pipe, yet
both customers pay the same amount.
I propose that we institute a volume -based rate structure, with two elements:
1. The fee would be based on the pipe diameter, as a proxy for volume of water used.
2. The change in the fee structure should be arranged so that it is revenue neutral.
Using the example below, a 2" pipe fee would be $50 and an 8" pipe fee would be $806.
Pipe
Size
(in)
Pipe
Area
(sq in)
Number
of
Services
(example)
Total
Area of
Service
(sq in)
Current
Quarterly
Charge
Current
Total
Revenue
Revenue
per sq in
Pro -
rated
Revenue
By Pipe
Area
Pro -rated
Total
Revenue
2
3.14
10
31.40
$243
$2,430
$50.38
$503.78
3
7.07
50
353.25
$243
$12,150
$113.35
$5,667.53
4
12.56
120
1507.20
$243
$29,160
$201.51
$24,181.46
5
19.63
30
588.75
$243
$7,290
$314.86
$9,445.88
6
28.26
40
1130.40
$243
$9,720
$453.40
$18,136.10
7
38.47
0
0.00
$243
$0
$617.13
$0.00
8
50.24
5
251.20
$243
$1,215
$806.05
$4,030.24
255
3862.20
$61,965
$16.04
$61,965.00
In order to make a decision on this issue, the DPW would need to provide the total number of
fire service connections, and the pipe size of each connection. This information can then be
entered into a spreadsheet to calculate the true pro -rated revenue by pipe area.
This issue was raise by Mr. Robert Tanis, a constituent who purchased one of units in the new
four -unit condo property at 14-20 Myrtle St, as well as by Mr. Amleto Martocchia, who manages
that property. I will forward copies of their correspondence for your use, as they also include
rates charged by neighboring communities.
I believe this is an issue of fairness, and deserves serious consideration by the Town Council.
When we look at fees for utilities and similar services, the amount of the fee should be related to
the amount of the service used, which in this case is the volume of water. This avoids burdening
small property owners with a high fee that would be insignificant to a large commercial
operation.
I will send a copy of the spreadsheet and correspondence under separate cover.
Thank you for considering this, and please let me know if you need any additional information.
Vincent Piccirilli