It seems that officials at Fort Worth City Hall will always find a way to nickel and dime taxpayers to death.
Here’s some of what the Fort Worth Report published on the latest proposed fee increase:
Fort Worth increased its stormwater utility fee by 15% last year in a bid to tackle rising flood risks across the city. This year, city staff are proposing an additional 5% increase that would bump average residents’ monthly fee from $6.61 to $6.94.
While fee increases often draw criticism from both residents and council members, the stormwater management department says these increases are essential to maintaining or replacing thousands of feet of drainage pipes. Without this work, the risk of sinkholes, flooding, erosion and property damage rises.
Linda Sterne, communications specialist for the division, said a pipe condition assessment identified up to 57,000 linear feet of pipes that need a rehab within one to two years — estimated to cost between $42 million and $172 million. That cost dwarfs the $12 million currently allocated to pipe rehab over the next five years.
“If additional funding for storm drain rehab is not received, the Stormwater Program will continue to prioritize rehab based on risk, but the rehab projects may be smaller and more point specific instead of rehabilitating the asset in full — which is typically more cost effective when considering long term needs,” Sterne wrote in an email.
