Water rates to increase
PROTECTED CONTENT
If you’re a current subscriber, log in below. If you would like to subscribe, please click the subscribe tab above.
Username and Password Help
Please enter your email and we will send you a password reset link.
by Jeff Snyder
MOUNT AYR, Iowa — The Mount Ayr City Council was informed of an impending increase in water rates via a letter the city received from SIRWA (Southern Iowa Water Authority) during its regular meeting on Monday night.
The letter announced a rate increase effective July 1, 2026 of $2.50 per 1000 gallons purchased. The current rate is $4 dollars per thousand. The announcement letter received by the city further went on to describe two additional rate increases in 2027 and 2028. Each of these increases will be one additional dollar per 1,000 gallons. This will put the new rates effective in 2028 at $8.50 per 1,000 gallons, more than doubling the rates to the city.
The current rate structure in the City of Mount Ayr cannot cover this level of increase in such a short time frame. This move, if it stands, will likely necessitate a significant rate increase to the residents of the community.
According to Jeff Rice, Co-General Manager of the new SIRWA water treatmernt facility in Creston, the increases are due to ever increasing costs that SIRWA has year over year and a reluctance to increase rates in accordance with other similar water delivery systems around the state.
“SIRWA still maintains the lowest water costs in the state, even with the proposed increases,” Rice said.
In addition to sourcing their own water supplies (Three Mile Lake is the primary), Rice said that SIRWA also purchases water from four nearby communities; Osceola, Leon, Greenfield and Corning. These sources are also experiencing cost increases and are reflected in the costs to SIRWA. According to Rice, the state of the art water treatment facility recently completed in Creston, did contribute to the cost increases.
