Do you want to get a feel of how the average Polk City residents live? Spend a few days walking through the neighborhoods across from the Chevron Station in the numbered streets area of town, and in the Sunset & Sunrise Ave. sections of the city and talk with some of the residents who live there. We did just that when we were distributing the door hangers you have most likely seen around town this week.
To the average Polk City residents $l00.00 is a lot of money. Every month they have to decide what they need to do without to be able to pay their water and/or sewer bills. They cannot afford NOT to pay the water bill due to the added $5.00 late fee, the $50.00 disconnect fee and the $50.00 reconnect fee that will be added to their bill. They must decide whether or not to run the A/C this month in the 98 degree heat, or disconnect the internet service, or how to cut back on groceries or medications. The residents who receive welfare or disability checks sometimes get their checks a few days after the 25th of the month when their water bill is due. If they don't have the funds for the water bill, or can't borrow the money from friends or neighbors, their water gets turned off. There is no grace period. Is that ethical?
Your heart just breaks when you talk to one person with 3 small toddlers who attempted to pay her water bill, but was $17.00 short. The city turned her water off. If she didn't have the additional $17.00, how will she come up with the $115.00 in additional fees and penalties to get her water turned on again? Another young adult told us that half his earnings go to pay the utility bills for his family since the 50% increase went into affect July 9th. There are citizens who are doing their laundry elsewhere and use disposable cups and plates to keep their water/sewer bills down.
To reduce his last $300.00 water bill, one Polk City resident takes his motor home to a local campground to fill up his water tank, then parks it behind his house. Him and his wife take their showers in the motor home, do their dishes there, and use that water to water their plants.
Then there are approximately 500 owners of undeveloped properties within Polk City limits who are being hit with an annual Water Availability Charge (WAC) of $136.80 and/or Sewer Availability Charge (SAC) of $277.56 per property because they have immediate access to one or both utilities. In comparison, Lakeland Electric only charges their customers if they have a meter on their properties.
Let's not forget the 25% higher water and sewer fees that are tacked on to the already skyrocketing prices of the "Out-of-City-Limits" of Polk City utility customers. One single resident told us his monthly water/sewer bill for one person is $100.00, half for water and half for sewer usage. To add insult to injury, these "Out-of-City-Limits" utility customers have no say in approaching our city commissioners to seek relief. They are not Polk City Registered Voters. Is that unconstitutional?
We just received an e-mail from another Polk City resident who writes: "My water bill is now the highest bill in my house....electric is only $35 - $65 throughout the year, phone bill is $25.00, and my water bill is over $60.00 every month. I try to use very little, like 30 gallons per day since I live alone, but for a family that is impossible. I have already lost a job because the company went under and I took a huge cut in pay to get a new job. Now this water bill is taking what little I have left."
We need relief from these extremely high water and sewer bills for our Polk City residents as well as our "Out-of-City-Limits" residents.
My water bill now runs 200 or more. Prior to polk city taking over the bill was less than 100. It seems to mostly be the sewage cost. It is outrageous. ONe of our neighbors are planing to move because he can not afford the water bill being so high. ALl of our neighbors are complaining. this is horriable.
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