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Nov 12, 2009 (Orange County Review - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- 4.6 for H2O

Council members voted to up town water rates as it passes along increases from the Rapidan Service Authority and the Town of Orange. Every year in October, the Town of Orange sets the rate it charges the Rapidan Service Authority for water. Then, RSA makes adjustments to the rate it charges Gordonsville, and finally, Town of Gordonsville officials arrive at a rate-sometimes with an increase, other times without one-for Town of Gordonsville water customers.

"We pass it along penny for penny as long as we can keep our budget balanced," Gordonsville Mayor Bob Coiner explained. But this year, the finance committee has recommended adding a 10 percent increase on what Gordonsville water customers pay, he added. Coiner said the town could use the extra money the proposed 10 percent increase would generate, but a fairer rate for recession-struck Gordonsville citizens would be 4.6 percent. The increase is expected to add up to a dollar or two per month.

Downstream revenue

At a public hearing on the proposed increase, Main Street resident Becky Lynch said she didn't think an increase in her water bill was justified considering "Every three or four months you're sending us something in the mail that says the water is causing cancer." Instead, Lynch suggested the money used for the mailings could "fix the problem" of contaminants in the water supply.

Coiner agreed: What's in the water has been a longtime issue for the Town of Gordonsville, and the solution has eluded experts so far.

Gordonsville distributes water it gets from RSA, which gets it from Orange, which gets it from the Rapidan River. Tests on Gordonsville water reveal substances used to treat the water back in the Orange treatment facility. And, because of the time and distance that water spends traveling down to Gordonsville, it also registers disinfectant substance byproducts, and the reactions they've caused in the pipelines.

Coiner said there's been work done in recent years to correct that. And as the water is retested quarterly, the amounts of disinfectant byproducts are on a steady decline.

"I'd like to offer a compromise," the mayor tendered, but the town's finances are budget-driven, he said.

Cops closing in

Town of Gordonsville Police Chief Christopher Spare updated council on the investigation into a wave of vandalisms last month that left many town car owners calling for a tow truck. Dozens of incidents of late night tire slashings on parked cars near Main Street resulted in tens of thousands of dollars worth of damage. Spare succinctly assured Gordonsville Town Council members that the police department was following up on promising leads.

"It is an active and ongoing investigation," Spare said.

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