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your rate system governs. I'm just very disappointed to hear today that you're reluctant to allow <br /> for even a phase in to get to that point. You want it to happen next year and be done. <br /> Mr.Falls said well,we have a couple things that are going on that call for this to be addressed now <br /> as rather than five (5) years from now. You both know, you've been in the utility business for <br /> quite some time. You understand when you finance and bond for an improved project, you need <br /> to have rates that the bond can be backed up by and we are going to be in a process where we're <br /> going to build a new Water Reclamation Facility that is going to require some financing and some <br /> bonding and to be able to do that,that's in the best interest of the customers that we serve we need <br /> to be able to have one (1)rate for the customers to get the best financing package that we can get. <br /> So if we waited and held off for five(5)years to phase in a rate, we would delay the construction <br /> of the Water Reclamation Facility until then. <br /> Mr. Brown said,I would say, our proposal was to transition to City rates, which would give you <br /> that control long term. You know what our rates are today and I can tell you we are raising our <br /> rates 3% on October lst. We've got a provision where were able to raise our rates by a CPI <br /> adjustment and I anticipate we'll be that for the next few years because our costs of providing <br /> service is going up with the increased regulatory. environment. I believe you can structure a bond <br /> issue today that contemplates maybe some constraints on your rates now with higher rates in the <br /> future. You can structure your debt service to work through these things. I think that can be <br /> worked around and the big picture, I think we came here lastmonth, the County presented the <br /> terms of a settlement that I think the City was presently surprised by the fact that we were looking <br /> to work out an agreement, but that agreement had to have certain terms. This agreement that you <br /> are proposing today is just the same result we'd get if we went to court and you guys won. I don't <br /> know what's benefiting it for the County. Our south barrier residents are pounding on us for even <br /> having offered this. The Town of Indian River Shores has sent us information that they're <br /> unpleased with our attempt to make an offer and I thought what we put on the table was a very <br /> reasonable offer for the City. You'd be able to lock down one(1)portion of your customer base <br /> quickly and resolve whatever you did with the Town as that process happened and I thought a <br /> faster way because I keep hearing we're holding up the construction of the new Wastewater Plant. <br /> I thought what we proposed was a faster way for the City to get to that certainty and again I believe <br /> the rate transition is something that can be dealt with in the structure of a bond issue. With that I <br /> don't know how the County can support anything like this. I thought that we had made a very fair <br /> offer to the City and this is completely not in line with what we proposed. I can't see supporting <br /> it, not to mention we've been presented today with the idea that the Town's really not going to <br /> react well to this news and I think our position has been a dispute between the Town and the City <br /> on the service territory. But,when you're starting to talk about making rate changes to an existing <br /> franchise agreement, what good is a franchise agreement and I'll go back to Mr. Reingold's point <br /> again,I got a sermon the last time I was here about the County not cooperating and about the intent <br /> of folks who many have passed on, that for an agreement that was done when I was in 9th grade, <br /> meanwhile the City is, in my opinion in my mind what I'm hearing very clearly not honoring an <br /> agreement entered nine (9) years ago when I was involved as the Budget Director in those <br /> 5 07/22/21 Conflict Resolution <br />