With a multimillion-dollar drinking water treatment project looming, the Hastings City Council and Board of Public Works know that teamwork will be essential to getting the project done at the least cost to utility ratepayers.
The 2013 Hastings Utilities budget was presented Tuesday evening to the council at a work session, with the council and board present.
The entire budget is $88,805,266, which is 1.00 percent less than the 2012 budget of $89,073,361.
Even though the budget is less, rates still are slated to increase, pending approval from the council at its meeting Nov. 26.
Water rates are set to increase to pay for the water treatment project to remedy rising levels of nitrates and uranium in drinking water north of the city that will inevitably enter HU customers' drinking water.
The cause of the rising levels of pollutants in the water is unknown, as is the source.
To read more, see Wednesday's Hastings Tribune or the Tribune e-edition.>>>
