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else so he wondered why the rates should not affect them more and having a higher <br />rate for them might bring them into more water conservation measures faster than <br />the current rate structure. <br />Mr. Freihammer continued reviewing the tiered water rate analysis with the <br />Commission. <br />Mr. Culver stated from a staff perspective they were digging into this more and <br />want to get Commission feedback as far as wanting to something. It really jumped <br />out at them the number of users that are over the 50,000 gallons of water per quarter. <br />He thought there should be focus as far as the tiered rates is targeting the homes <br />that are over the 50,000 gallons. Whether it be seasonally or all year, try to figure <br />out what is going on and why is so much water being used and how can the City <br />help the resident reduce their water consumption. By setting a tier like this it will <br />grab the resident's attention. <br />Mr. Culver noted that it does not cost a lot of money in Minnesota to distribute, <br />capture water. There are capital costs with aging infrastructure, but the actual <br />treatment of water is not that expensive, so it is difficult for a lot of communities to <br />figure out how to value water. <br />Member Misra thought this does address the issue, especially in the summer months <br />with the top tier. She would approach this a different way and give the people that <br />are not using water a break and decrease their rates. She thought what was being <br />proposed was the status quo and to alert the high-water users. She would prefer to <br />see a more fundamental adjustment of the system so if the homeowner is using less <br />water they would pay lower rates. If the homeowner is making the effort to <br />conserve, then that should be reflected in the bill. <br />Mr. Freihammer stated they could take the additional revenue and apply that back <br />but with the current proposal it would be pennies. <br />Vice Chair Wozniak asked Member Misra if she was suggesting creating a lower <br />tier along with an upper tier. <br />Member Misra indicated she was. <br />Mr. Culver stated the base fee is covering the capital and some of staff costs, but <br />the consumption cannot be adjusted because they pay a fixed rate to the City of St. <br />Paul for the water. He hesitated to recommend something like that. There would <br />still need to be a balance between tiers in order to get a similar number at the end. <br />Vice Chair Wozniak stated he would explore that idea, but he thought if they are <br />going to get one change through it ought to be at a minimum of the 4a' tier. He <br />liked exploring the option of adjusting the rates to incentivize the lower water users. <br />Page 9 of 11 <br />