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Residents upset over Oakland Township water storage tank costs
Residents in the township will see as much as a $400 more tacked onto their water bill every year for the next 30 years to help pay for a new 500,000 gallon water storage tank.
OAKLAND TOWNSHIP, Mich. (FOX 2) - Oakland Township residents will see their water bills rise by hundreds of dollars over the next few decades as the region works to pay off the debt from a new water storage tank that's been in the works for years.
In order to pay for what the township describes as "state-mandates improvements" to its water systems, it's tacking on about $100 to each resident's water bill every quarter for the next 30 years.
Residents at a town hall meeting Wednesday night weren't happy about the rate increase.
But this is the price for water improvements, the township argued. Construction on a new 500,000-gallon water storage tank has been in the works since 2014 as Oakland Charter Township considered how to pay for the $5.2 million project.
The new tank, built at the Knorrwood Pines well house property is expected to be finished in 2023. The township said the improvements will protect public health and improve water system reliability.
According to population estimates from 2021, the township has 20,177 people living in it, nearly double from a decade ago.