Mountain Mutual Water Company -- Rates & Fees

Table of Contents

1.     MMWC's Current Water Rates for Users (January 2010)

2.     Transitional Rate Increase to be Implemented May 1, 2010

3.     Availability Fees for Non-User Members

4.     MMWC's Other Fees

5.     2009 Special Assessment

6.     Explanation for 2009 Assessment and 2010 Rate Increase

7.     Compare rates charged by other Teller County water providers

MMWC's Current Water Rates for Users (Jan-Apr. 2010)

        MMWC currently charges its residential "User" customers (i.e., customers who are connected to the system) $35/month.^[1]

Transitional Rate Increase for Users Effective May 1, 2010

       To provide continuing funding for needed capital improvements, and to give MMWC's members an incentive for metering, MMWC will increase MMWC's User rates as follows, effective May 1, 2010 (delayed from originally planned January 1, 2010 implementation because of delay in obtaining meters):

The lesser of:

• $50/month or
• $25/month plus $0.005/gallon if the "User" Customer is metered.

(Users that are not metered will pay $50/month starting May 2010.  Therefore, installing a MMWC-approved meter before the 12/31/11 deadline will not result in a bigger water usage bill, but could save you money.)

Availability Fees for Non-Users (starting 2010)

        Availability customers are charged $150/year for the availability of a water tap from MMWC.  These charges help defray the costs of maintaining, operating, and improving a central water system for CCME.  The availability of a central water system also increases the market value of most members' lots.  For more information, see FAQ#10.

MMWC's Other Fees

MMWC also charges the following fees:

• a $500 connection fee to "Availability" customers.
  
• a $8000 fee for the sale of a MMWC membership to CCME lots whose MMWC memberships have been forfeited.
  
• a $50 fee to deliver water to a user's cistern by truck (if the user's cistern or service line has frozen).  MMWC generally delivers water by truck for free (in reasonable quantities) if water delivery is impeded due to a problem, such as a frozen main, for which MMWC is responsible.


• $100/hour labor (where customer is responsible) if heavy equipment included; otherwise $50/hour (where customer is responsible)

2009 Special Assessment (approved at Annual Meeting)

        At MMWC's March 21, 2009 Annual Meeting, MMWC's membership voted to impose a special assessment on MMWC's customers:

• $80 from each of MMWC's Members and Customers

        For background information on MMWC's budget needs, check out the "Budget" page.

Explanation for 2009 Assessment and 2010 Rate Increase

       For background information on MMWC's infrastructure and budget needs -- which necessitate a significant increase in MMWC's availability and user fees -- please review the "Infrastructure" and "Budget" pages.

       Also, on February 23, 2009, MMWC's Board of Directors voted to require that all users be metered by the end of 2011.  (Click here to see the text of MMWC's new metering regulation).

       To encourage users to install meters sooner rather than later -- and to not penalize them for doing so -- MMWC will implement (effective May 1, 2010) a transitional metered rate structure in which user fees will rise to $50/month for all non-metered users and be capped at $50/month for metered users.  During this transition period, metering will not raise a user's fees, and could lower them. 

       This upper limit of $50/month for users is temporary.  After everyone is metered, MMWC plans to institute a tiered rate structure (like those imposed by our neighboring communities, below) for all users, to encourage conservation. 

Compare rates charged by other Teller County water providers

Highland Lakes Water District (Jan. 2005)^[2]
serving ~348 homes; in existence since the 1970s

 $30 base fee for up to 2000 gallons/month
+$11.50/1000 gallons for 2100-7000 gallons
+$14.50/1000 gallons for 7100-8000 gallons
+$17.50/1000 gallons for 8100-9000 gallons
+$20.50/1000 gallons for 9100-10000 gallons
+$23.50/1000 gallons for 10100-11000 gallons
+$26.50/1000 gallons for 11100-12000 gallons
+$29.50/1000 gallons for 12100-13000 gallons
+$32.50/1000 gallons for 13100-14000 gallons
+$35.50/1000 gallons for 14100-15000 gallons
+$38.50/1000 gallons for excess above 15000 gallons

Residential Water Tap Fee = $8,898 (to go up to $9,245 on 05/15/2009)

Valley Maintenance Water Co. (2004)^[3]
serving ~200 homes in Spring Valley

 $35 base fee for up to 5000 gallons/month
+$8/1000 gallons for 5000-8000 gallons
+$10/1000 gallons for 8000-10000 gallons
+$15/1000 gallons for excess above 7000 gallons

Residential Water Tap Fee = $9,000.

      Note: Valley Maintenance Water Co., a non-profit corporation, serves about 200 taps in Spring Valley with about 10 miles of distribution line; wells are located within the Highland Lakes subdivision.  MMWC, by contrast, serves about 322 taps, but has to maintain over 60 miles of distribution lines, plus a long transmission line.

Arabian Acres Water District (2006)^[4]

 $40 base fee
+$8/1000 gallons

Residential Water Tap Fee = $8,000 

Woodland Park Utilities Department (outside city limits -- 2010)^[5]

 $3.25 base fee
+$12.66/1000 gallons for usage between 0-4000 gallons
+$13.82/1000 gallons for usage between 4000-6000 gallons
+$15.82/1000 gallons for usage between 6000-8000 gallons
+$20.18/1000 gallons for usage above 8000 gallons

Residential Water Tap Fee = $10,871 (in city)

Footnotes:

[1]  MMWC currently charges the CCMEPOA $210/month.  Source: July 14, 2008 Minutes of the MMWC Board of Directors.

[2]  Source: 3/11/2009 telephone inquiry.

[3]  Source: 3/9/2009 telephone inquiry.

[4]  Source: http://www.aapoa.org/

[5]  Source: http://www.city-woodlandpark.org/department/utilities/2010%20Residential%20Rates.pdf