The city council Monday accepted the recommendation of its Rushford Municipal Electric board because the city-owned business lost money last year and even with the increase will lose money this year. Next year the rate increase is projected to produce a five percent margin, which is money the city may use for other costs.

Rate analysis has been a long-term project, said councilman and RME member Vern Bunke. "Rate increases have been phased in over several years to ease the burden, but we are losing money." The flood was disruptive, but people rebuilt their homes and made them more efficient and "put in new efficient appliances, god bless them, but it hurt our income."

Before the council meeting was a public hearing and several spoke, including Jim Hoiness who said, "Ten percent is a lot when factored in with inflation," and said his grocery store is "as efficient as it can get."

Bunke said the wholesale rate that Tri-County Electric/Dairyland charges the city to buy power keeps going up and "the current increase is not being entirely passed along."

Council member Ted Roberton added the city once had a very beneficial rate and after going to TEC there were limits on increases, but now the wholesale rate is market price and went up $200,000 in one year.

The increase is about one-cent per kilowatt for most users, making it about 12-cent kw for the average homeowner. The average-which is different for every household-would be $8 per month(year round average). The base rate, the required system minimum charge, does not change.

PowerPlus Engineering did the study and says the new rate would be similar to neighboring utilities.

Rushford electric rates were once the lowest in the area but have now moved to the mid-point according to comparative charts. Dan Fox, president of Rushford Hypersonic, said, "Electric rates are going up but not as much as elsewhere. We're lucky here, support the EDA and build jobs and build the community."

The hearing closed and in the motion for rate increase Roberton said, "We really don't have any choice." Bunke, Roberton, and Honsey voted in favor and Robert Dahl was opposed.

Contracts for legal representation of the city were to be decided on, but the language for Terry Chiglo on civil issues was laid over for clarification, but the continuation of Scott Springer for prosecutarial cases, mostly in Preston, was approved. The latter was divided: Bunke and Mayor Chris Hallum were opposed. Bunke had earlier moved for a request for proposals(for lawyers to represent the city in court) but it died for lack of a second.

Lee Humble, a former pilot that remains interested in aviation (he was an original member of the Rushford Area Flyers organization), was appointed to the Rushford Municipal Airport Commission. It is the seat of Norris Kinneberg, who is relocating to Michigan.

Happy with the evident success of the Homecoming celebration last week, the council adopted a resolution commending the Rushford Festivities leadership and volunteers on "outstanding effort in running a well-organized and safe celebration, a job well done."

City Administrator Windy Block reported that the DNR's Jeff Green, who has done much research on the hydrology of the Rush and Pine Creek watershed, said that his research application has been funded at $500,000 for the next few years, which will allow him to continue to study the surface and subsurface movements of creeks and tributaries in the watershed.

Block also made a progress report on the critical re-certification of Rushford levee, which has large consequences on flood insurance rates. Several URS Corp. engineering studies have been identified and approved. The closure gates are OK, the erosion issue is approved and the levee has been identified for height increases in two areas. The underseepage potential under the levee is identified but has not been dealt with, and this could be the most challenging expense, requiring pressure-releaving drain channels on the housing side of the levee.