Hawai'i Kai sewer fee to rise
By Suzanne Roig
Advertiser East Honolulu Writer
The privately owned sewer company that serves Hawai'i Kai and parts of Kuli'ou'ou plans to raise residential sewer rates 18.6 percent — or an average of about $8 a month for an estimated 10,000 customers.
• What: The PUC will hold a public hearing on Hawaii American Water's proposed rate increase • When: 6 p.m. July 3 • Where: Kaiser High School cafeteria. Citizens are encouraged to submit written testimony through July 13 to the Public Utilities Commission, 465 S. King St., Room 103, Honolulu, HI 96813.
Hawaii-American Water, which provides sewer service for all of the Hawai'i Kai community from Kalama Valley to Kawaihae Street, says it needs to raise rates to keep pace with the growing need to upgrade its aging sewer system. The last time the company raised rates was in 1993, said Lee Mansfield, Hawaii-American Water manager.
Hearing set for July 3
"The important thing to remember is that while it is a large increase, it's not so large if you look at" how long it's been since the last increase, Mansfield said. "The Public Utilities Commission doesn't like to raise rates yearly. It's an involved process with the PUC."
The commission will hold a public hearing July 3 on the company's proposed rate increase. The increase, if approved by the commission, would take effect in February 2004.
The company proposes to raise single-family home monthly sewer fees from $48.46 to $57.47 per month. The rate for condominiums would go from $38.77 to $45.98 per month. The fees do not include charges for water, which are billed separately by the Honolulu Board of Water Supply.
The city, which operates sewer service for the rest of Honolulu, charges about $35.35 a month for an average family of four living in a single-family home.
Hawaii-American's rates for all customers are based on a flat fee rather than upon use. The city's rates are a base fee plus a fee calculated according to use.
"We think this is a reasonable amount," Mansfield said. "We invest $2 million in the sewer system and the plant yearly. The rate increase will enable us to continue that level of investment in the future."
The increase in 1993 was 18 percent, he said.
The sewer system was put in place more than 40 years ago when industrialist Henry J. Kaiser came in and turned swamp and farmland into a residential community. Many of the pipes are being infiltrated by seawater or have deteriorated completely. The system doesn't meet certain city requirements, which is why it's still privately owned, Mansfield said.
The company last worked on its pipes in 2001 when it relined 1,000 feet of pipe from Kalaniana'ole Highway to Anapalau Street along Lunalilo Home Road.
The company also just finished construction of a new lab and administration office at its plant across from Sandy Beach. That building cost $1 million, Mansfield said.
Additional pipe work is planned for portions of Hawai'i Kai Drive.
Charlie Rodgers, chairman of the Hawai'i Kai Neighborhood Board, said the rate increase appears to be excessive and he plans to bring up the issue at the next board meeting on Tuesday.
"They may have trouble with those lines, but I feel we've been taken by these people," Rodgers said. "Now they choose to nail us with another fee increase."
Reach Suzanne Roig at sroig@honoluluadvertiser.com or 395-8831.
