Lakeside Ratepayers to See Significant Sewer Fee Increase Next Month

Lakeside County Water and Sewer District (LCWSD) board members on Thursday unanimously approved a resolution that will increase sewer fees by an average of $30 per month for ratepayers.

Starting in September, metered customers will be charged a monthly base rate of $61 per Volume Ratio Unit (VRU) compared to $31 per VRU that was charged the month prior. Flat rate customers will now pay $78 compared to $48, according to a sewer rate increase proposal notice mailed to ratepayers on June 30.

Board members said the rate increase is necessary to pay for an overdue upgraded sewer system facility and will replace the current aerated lagoon system, which was constructed in 1987. The new wastewater-to-groundwater sewage treatment system is moving forward in its second phase a mile north of Flathead Lake.

Ratepayers would contribute roughly $28 million to the total project costs, helping to fund labor costs, administrative and overhead expenses, electricity, fuel, routine equipment maintenance, contracted services and chemicals for the new facility.

“The mistake that we may have made over the years is that we waited too long to raise the rates,” LCWSD President Marc Liechti said. “We were surprised with the cost increases.”

During the Aug. 21 meeting, LCWSD General Manager Rodney Olson told the packed community room at the Lakeside Quick Response Unit that staff have been working to expand the facility since 2020 and launched the plan in 2021.

LCWSD staff and board members said while they acknowledge the dramatic rate increase, officials informed members of the public that inflation has added significant costs.

“We launched this wastewater facility plant upgrade in June of 2021 – that’s four years ago,” Olson said. “Just after 2020 … before multiple years of inflation, before any large developers, before Flathead County approached us regarding sewage.”

New state regulations also require the district to build ground support in case of an earthquake, which contributed to the $12 million price tag on a new storage pond compared to the original estimated cost of $4 million, according to officials.

Adding to capacity issues, Flathead County in recent years approached LCWSD and requested to be a partner at the septage receiving facility. Earlier this year, the Montana Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) approved a permit for the district to discharge treated wastewater and groundwater.

“Our project goals and our primary objective is a major wastewater infrastructure replacement upgrade with expansion,” Olson said. “That’s an obligation and a responsibility on our part to upgrade the facility, but also operating to make sure you have the capacity to handle the growth that’s happening in your community.”

The ratepayer increase has drawn widespread opposition from Lakeside residents and ratepayers, who were both skeptical of the impacts the new system would have on Flathead Lake along with the price increase.

“We have a question about the rates because we have not been adequately given the data to evaluate for ourselves as to why these rates are going up so much … I’d ask you, please do not approve those rate increases until the ratepayers feel like they have a clearer understanding of that,” Steve Martinez said during public comment.

Members of nonprofits that included in the North Shore Water Alliance and Citizens for a Better Flathead also spoke in opposition of the rate increases and argued since the rate study had not yet been finalized, price increases should not be imposed.

“This is the epitome of poor leadership on your board because [the] public deserves to know,” Citizens for a Better Flathead Director Mayre Flowers said.

Public members were also critical of an agreement the sewer district has in place with Discovery Land Company, LLC developers. Flathead County Commissioners yesterday approved a preliminary plat for the company’s 359-residential unit luxury golf course, which will require an expanded sewer district to meet the demand.

Developers are required to build their own sewer and water line infrastructure to the district’s specifications before turning ownership over to the district following each phase of completion, according to Olson.

This spring, Citizens for a Better Flathead filed two separate lawsuits involving the LCSWD.

The Confederated Salish Kootenai Tribes (CSKT) partnered with Citizens and on May 28 filed a lawsuit challenging the DEQ for issuing a groundwater discharge permit, arguing it would pollute Flathead Lake.

On April 16, Citizens for a Better Flathead and district ratepayer Bruce Young filed a complaint challenging the LCWSD’s failure to adhere to public participation procedures and requested injunctive relief.

According to the complaint, Citizens argued the LCSWD violated rights to public participation and did not adopt adequate notice when it awarded a construction bid for the expansion’s first phase. It also argued the district didn’t allow the public to “meaningfully comment” on the agreement with Discovery Land Company.

Flathead County District Court Judge Paul Sullivan on Aug. 20 denied Citizens’ application for a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction where they sought an emergency halting of the sewer district’s expansion.

In Judge Sullivan’s order, he wrote the LCSWD did not violate the state constitution, and they issued appropriate responses to Citizens when information was requested, which included the construction bid notice and the Discovery Land Company agreement. Neither document existed at the time of Citizens’ request, Sullivan wrote.

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