City adopts new water rates, approve new regulations

The Clarendon Board of Aldermen approved four ordinances last week, setting new water rates and regulating topics from the height of grass in the city to the tethering of dogs.

Ordinance 431 establishes a new tiered system of charging for water in the city that is based on the philosophy of “use more, pay more.” Under the new rates, consumers who use on the base amount of water, 2,000 gallons or less, will see no price increase.

Consumers who use progressively higher amounts of water, will incur stepped up water rates at specific intervals, with high water users experiencing steep rate increases. The specific rates are printed in this week’s Enterprise in a public notice on page eleven.

Aldermen also took action on Ordinance 432, governing the maximum height of weeds and grass allowed by municipal law. Current ordinance allows for a height of 48 inches before the city could take action. City Hall proposed lowering that to 12 inches, but some aldermen thought that was too restrictive and possibly hypocritical.

“If we pass 12 inches tonight, the city will be the biggest violator of the law,” said Alderman Doug Kidd. “Whatever we do, we better take care of our house first.”

The board finally settled on a height of 18 inches, and Mayor Larry Hicks assured Kidd that city property would be taken care of.

The board also approved Ordinance 433, prohibiting grass, limbs, and other yard waste from being placed in city Dumpsters – something most concerned thought was illegal already. These items may be taken free of charge to the city’s recycling center, and plans are in place to locate specific “yard waste” Dumpsters in various locations around the city.

Ordinance 434 also got the okay from the board, amending animal control rules to allow dogs to be tethered according to state law. The specific requirements of this ordinance are also in a public notice in this week’s Enterprise.

In other city business, the board approved a proposal from the Clarendon Economic Development Corporation to have the option of making the position of Director of Tourism & Economic Development a city employee for the purposes of payroll taxes and benefits. The CEDC would reimburse the city the full cost of such employment and the employee would be supervised by the CEDC Board of Directors. The CEDC is a unit of the city and overseen by the board of aldermen.

The board authorized City Hall to seek bids for a skid loader that would be used primarily in the water department and paid for with tax notes left over from the recent water and sewer project.

Mayor Hicks updated the board on the street work and said the guttering was proceeding nicely and that the contractors were doing a great job although they had been slowed down some by rain.

City officials also spent time last Tuesday continuing their budget discussions.