Water Rates To Jump For T.O. Homeowners
Posted November 20, 2007 12:00 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Toronto homeowners will already be paying more for their vehicles and if they decide to buy or sell their residence next year – soon they’ll be paying more every time they turn on the tap.
Water rates are going up more than nine per cent next year, or about $50 per home. City council approved the price hike Monday to help cover the cost of a repair backlog totaling about $1 billion.
Expensive fixes are needed on the city’s water mains, sewers and other infrastructure, all of which are steadily eroding.
The annual nine per cent increase is scheduled to continue through to 2012, with the repair costs expected to peak at $1.3 billion in 2009 before dropping down to a more manageable $300 million in 2015.
Meanwhile industrial water users are expected to pay less – 13 per cent less – but only if they adhere to a strict conservation plan.
The price hike was approved in city council by a vote of 37-6.
