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Fresno To Get $195 Million Loan For Water Project

Ezra David Romero
/
Valley Public Radio

A new state loan could help make the City of Fresno’s proposed water rate increase more palatable for local rate payers. 

Fresno Mayor Ashley Swearengin announced the city’s revised water plan Thursday, which now includes a $186 million loan from the state. She says while rates would still go up, the new cash means the average monthly increase would be around $3 a month less than originally proposed.

SWEARENGIN: “Our rate plan is built more on consumption, which means ratepayers will have more control over what their bill is, based on how much water they use.”

Swearengin made the announcement together with council member Steve Brandau. Last month he announced would abstain from a critical vote on the $429 million plan, saying the increased rates would hurt residents across Fresno.

Brandau says he now supports the project, which would pay for new pipes and a treatment plant to reduce reliance on groundwater.

With a 33 percent increase over the next five years, a $25 Fresno household water bill today would grow incrementally to just under $50 by 2019. The proposal will go before the city council next Thursday.

Ezra David Romero is an award-winning radio reporter and producer. His stories have run on Morning Edition, Morning Edition Saturday, Morning Edition Sunday, All Things Considered, Here & Now, The Salt, Latino USA, KQED, KALW, Harvest Public Radio, etc.
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