NEWS
MyEagleNews.com
Wednesday, October 28, 2020
A3
Sewer rates to
increase by $12
Officials say increase
necessary to obtain
financing for wastewater
treatment project
By Rudy Diaz
Blue Mountain Eagle
The city of John Day will increase
sewer rates by $12 next year.
In January, the base rate for sewer
will go up to $60, which will allow the
city to qualify for U.S. Department of
Agriculture financing at a low inter-
est rate, City Manager Nick Green said.
After the new treatment plant is con-
structed, the city can then look at the
possibility of a rate reset, he said.
“What we want to be careful of is that
we don’t underfund the facility to the
point that we’re not putting any money
into future replacements and we end up
in a situation like the city was in in 2009
where there wasn’t adequate reserve
funds, our rates weren’t high enough
to get financing and we weren’t able to
build,” Green said.
With the increase in rates, the USDA
will have the authority to consolidate
the city’s higher-interest debt, the loans
from the property purchase and bridge
loans for the rest of the construction into
a 40-year-loan with a 1% interest rate,
Green said.
“What that will allow us to do is
stretch those payments out at a lower
“WHAT WE WANT TO BE CAREFUL OF IS THAT WE
DON’T UNDERFUND THE FACILITY TO THE POINT
THAT WE’RE NOT PUTTING ANY MONEY INTO
FUTURE REPLACEMENTS AND WE END UP IN A
SITUATION LIKE THE CITY WAS IN IN 2009 WHERE
THERE WASN’T ADEQUATE RESERVE FUNDS,
OUR RATES WEREN’T HIGH ENOUGH TO GET
FINANCING AND WE WEREN’T ABLE TO BUILD.”
—Nick Green, John Day city manager
interest rate,” Green said. “That, cou-
pled with whatever grant funds they can
bring to the table and other grant sources
we can find between now and the end
of construction, should allow us to reset
that rate.”
The increase was approved during
the committee budget meeting in May.
“I know that’s going to be hard,”
Green said. “...We understand, espe-
cially at this time, it can be difficult to
see a rate hike like that. I don’t think we
can get better financing than what we
got.”
John Day’s water and sewer rates
have been steadily rising for the past
five years by a dollar for each fund. The
council in the past discussed the need
to raise the rates in order to qualify for
grants or loans.
“What we want to do is build in
enough cushion in the rate structure so
that we can make the investments we
need to make to keep the plant opera-
tional,” Green said.
On Oct. 2, the city learned they were
awarded $3 million in funding from the
Business Oregon Infrastructure Finance
Authority for the city’s new wastewater
treatment plant and the John Day Inno-
vation Gateway.
Business Oregon Water/Wastewa-
ter Program awarded $750,000 in grant
funding and $1.75 million in loan funds
for 30 years at 1% interest, which will
help fund completion of the design and
begin construction of the new wastewa-
ter treatment plant.
The second award was $60,000 in
grant funds and $535,000 in loan funds
for 20 years at 2% interest. This fund-
ing will reimburse the city for the pur-
chase of the Iron Triangle property and
allow the city to begin developing the
new 12-acre Innovation Gateway indus-
trial park north of the John Day River.
Eagle file photo
The John Day City Council during a July meeting.
Eagle file photo
A for sale sign in John Day.
John Day approves
housing incentive rebates
$46,859 in incentive
payments approved
for nine homes
By Rudy Diaz
Blue Mountain Eagle
John Day’s housing incen-
tive program continues to
grow.
Another year of incen-
tive payments were approved
Oct. 13 by the city’s Urban
Renewal Agency as more peo-
ple participate in the program
that provides cash rebates of
7% of the increase in assessed
property value for new homes
and 15% of the increase for
remodels that increase the
value by at least $10,000.
Eight homeowners in John
Day received refunds in 2020,
which totaled $46,859 for
building a new home or con-
ducting a major remodel.
Doug and Becky Sharp
received a $1,908 rebate on a
new home that they recently
completed. Jim and Sandy
Bay received $8,093 for a
new home they constructed.
Terry and Elizabeth Davidson
received $7,530 for complet-
ing a new house.
Sally and Jeffrey Knowles
received $14,954 in rebates
for the construction of a
multi-dwelling unit that con-
sists of two duplexes: $6,628
was for one duplex and $8,326
was for the other.
Dave and Lisa Holland
received $1,118 in rebates for
the addition of a new structure,
and Jesse Madden received
$3,834 in rebates for a major
remodel. Mahogany Ridge
Properties received $6,561 for
a major remodel.
City Manager Nick Green
said 2020 will be a reset year
with only one new applicant
looking to participate in the
program.
“COVID hit at the worst
possible time because every-
body was pumping the brakes
in April saying, ‘What is
this?’” Green said.
He said, when people
would usually be working to
get permits and getting ready
to do projects, they were con-
cerned about COVID-19’s
impact on the community.
“By the time late sum-
mer rolled around and they
realized it was going to be
OK, it was too late,” Green
said.
In the first two years of the
incentive program, the city has
seen more than $1.1 million in
increased assessed values.
The agency also approved
resolution 2020-05, which
allows manufactured homes
to be eligible for the pro-
gram through the guidelines
established.
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