Seal Beach water, sewer rates on rise as city copes with aging pipes, infrastructure
Council Comments
by Nathan Steele
Seal Beach Council Member
There’s a lot going on in Seal Beach these days that’s having an impact on all of us. As the Seal Beach City Councilman from District 5 representing much of Leisure World, I am acutely aware of the financial pressures many of our neighbors are feeling these days.
I know that a significant number of my neighbors live on fixed incomes. Since 2021, the cost of living in the country and in Leisure World has skyrocketed. I see my neighbors in Ralph’s trying to figure out how to pay for their groceries. The United States enjoyed 12 years of low inflation and low interest rates. But, in 2021, prices began shooting up and making life more difficult for many of us.
Prices for the Mutuals, Golden Rain Foundation and the City of Seal Beach have also exploded. We all know that our dues have seen dramatic increases the last few months. Literally, the costs of running Seal Beach, Leisure World and the Mutuals have exploded.
As one example, Seal Beach has a five-year projected budget shortfall of over $15 million. On top of that, along comes Seal Beach with a proposed water and sewer rate increase.
Here’s what’s going on: The water and sewer infrastructure in Seal Beach is aging. Some of the pipes are over 100 years old. In the last few months alone, the city has had three water main breaks, emergencies that were unanticipated.
The city has recently completed a video inspection of all the pipes to determine the condition of the pipes and the most vulnerable areas.
The city hired Raftelis, a consulting company that specializes in water/sewer rates and infrastructure, to give us a forecast of what our system needs and how much we need to charge to keep ours in good shape.
They recommended rates that will more than double our current rates by the year 2028. The first increase, as early as April of this year, will be about $6 a month for each unit in Leisure World. You can find the proposed rate increases by going to the city’s website at www. sealbeachca.gov.
Of course, none of us in Leisure World pay for our water and sewer directly to the city. The city sends the bill for all of Leisure World to GRF, which divides the bill among the Mutuals. Each Mutual pays its portion back to GRF. All of Leisure World represents one single customer to Seal Beach utilities.
As much as I wish the increases weren’t necessary, the experts tell us that they are. As your city councilman, I have a fiduciary responsibility to ensure the continued viability of the sewer and water systems in Seal Beach. The experts are telling us that we need to do several major capital improvement projects costing millions to improve the water and sewer systems. To support those projects, as well as cover the increasing operating expenses of the utilities, we must raise rates. If we defer those capital projects, the cost of those projects will increase, becoming more and more expensive. At the same time, the city would be living at increased risk of a potential catastrophic system failure.
In my experience, big problems should be confronted the minute you become aware. Problems like our aging water and sewer system never get better with age, never improve when left alone and only get worse over time.
Responsible leadership requires me to support the water/ sewer rate increase. It may be painful, but it will be a lot worse if we don’t address the problem now. I know good, well-meaning people will disagree with me. I also know that many agree with me: it is simply the right thing to do. I appreciate your understanding and support.
