The Observation Deck

I noticed on my bill that the water rates had increased 5.5 percent and sewer 10.5 percent when inflation is 2.2 percent. Is this another example of City of Lakewood's management, don't fix the budget, increase taxes and cost of services. I'm sure there was a discussion at city hall that nobody will care, is not that much money, After all, Lakewood is rich in employees, long on duplicate services, and retirement benefits are beginning to eroded the budget. Sewer at 10.5 percent increase, how much of this increase in going into capital improvements, after all, putting out food waste collection containers to protect the environment is more important than investing in the sewage line infrastructure to reduce the outflows of raw sewage into the lake. Where is all the capital improvement funds going for water, the city only distribute the City of Cleveland water through their lead service lines into residences. Maybe the lead in the water is the reason the City of Lakewood has one of the highest tax rates in northern Ohio.

You must have missed this. It was discussed here at the time.

http://www.onelakewood.com/commitment-t ... ity-rates/

This brings up a question, what happened to the all the increases over the decades that were to be used as capital for replacement of the infrastructure? It's a safe assumption that the waste and potable lines didn't suddenly deteriorate overnight. The common manholes have been an on going problem for thirty years that I lived here. Which bring us to two conclusions, the City been inept and/or inert at capital planning, or capital funds have been spent for street resurfacing when sewer or waterlines were replaced, or for maintenance. I would suggest the latter, capital covers the excessive manpower expenses of a city, and it's easy to justify. The City's sound of silence suggests they have no schedule to replace the 100 plus year old lead service lines leaching lead into residence's water. After fifty years of knowing the health issues associated with lead water lines, the EPA is still allowing city's to perform a joke of cursory testing for lead in residences. It's been said, one of the reasons Rome fell was due to their practice of using lead as a food sweetener.

This brings up a question, what happened to the all the increases over the decades that were to be used as capital for replacement of the infrastructure? It's a safe assumption that the waste and potable lines didn't suddenly deteriorate overnight. The common manholes have been an on going problem for thirty years that I lived here. Which bring us to two conclusions, the City been inept and/or inert at capital planning, or capital funds have been spent for street resurfacing when sewer or waterlines were replaced, or for maintenance. I would suggest the latter, capital covers the excessive manpower expenses of a city, and it's easy to justify. The City's sound of silence suggests they have no schedule to replace the 100 plus year old lead service lines leaching lead into residence's water. After fifty years of knowing the health issues associated with lead water lines, the EPA is still allowing city's to perform a joke of cursory testing for lead in residences. It's been said, one of the reasons Rome fell was due to their practice of using lead as a food sweetener.