Mount Prospect residents could see water, sewer and waste collection fees rise

Mount Prospect residents would see a hike in water and waste collection rates - but perhaps not in property taxes - under a 2022 budget proposal presented to village board and finance commission members Tuesday.

Finance Director Amit Thakkar presented the budget proposal, which calls for no increase in the village's share of the property tax for the second year in a row.

However, the proposal contains an 8% hike in water and sewer rates, and a 3.5% increase in waste collection fees.

Thakkar said a customer who uses 5,000 gallons monthly will pay $89.50 per month under the plan, an increase of $6.55.

Refuse rates will go up to $262.68 per year, an increase of $8.88.

The plan also includes a new storm sewer utility fee of $5 per month, which is expected to provide the village with $1 million annually for flood control and storm sewer projects.

Thakkar said about $1.4 million of annual home rule sales tax revenue already is dedicated to flood control, but $925,000 of it is tied up in payments on 2013 bonds that are set to expire in 2033. The remaining $475,000 is not enough to cover any major projects, he said.

Thakkar also noted that in 2019 and 2020, the village funded major flood control projects using $6.7 million in reserves plus a grant from the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago.

"In the long run, this use of reserves for flood control projects is not sustainable," he said. "We do not have a dedicated funding source to provide for any flood control or storm sewer projects."