JULIE SCHROEDER, Utility Coordinator
CHUCK RESSLER, Maintenance Worker
DAVID HEYN, Meter Reader
JASON KING, Maintenance Worker
 

 

 

 


AUTO DRAFT: Automatic withdrawal of funds from your checking account to pay your water/sewer bill is available. Click on the "Auto Draft Withdrawal Form" on the right above, print it out, fill in the information, and mail it along with a voided check to Chikaming Township Water & Sewer, P.O. Box 40, Harbert, MI 49115. You will still get a bill every other month, but it will say "DO NOT PAY" in the lower left hand corner. The amount will be withdrawn from your account on the last day you can pay the bill. That is listed on the bill by "After this date pay____".
WATER DEPARTMENT RATES - Chikaming Township Property Owners Effective February 1, 2008 - Ordinance No. 128
 
METER SIZE
MIN. MONTHLY RATES
TWO MONTH BILLING
 
(4,000 gallons or less)
(8,000 gallons or less)
3/4 inch or less
$25.00
$50.00
1 inch
$27.00
$54.00
1 1/2 inches
$30.00
$60.00
2 inches
$33.00
$66.00
3 inches
$37.00
$74.00
4 inches
$42.00
$84.00
6 inches
as per ordinance
 
GALLONAGE RATES - Apply to BOTH Chikaming Township and customers outside Chikaming Township: from 4,000 gallons to 26,000 gallons per month - $3.20 per 1,000 gallons and over 30,000 gallons per month - $9.60 per 1,000 gallons.
 
WATER DEPARTMENT RATES - Outside Chikaming Township
 
METER SIZE
MIN. MONTHLY RATES
TWO MONTH BILLING
 
(4,000 gallons or less)
(8,000 gallons or less)
3/4 inch or less
$33.50
$67.00
1 inch
$36.20
$72.40
1 1/2 inches
$40.20
$80.40
2 inches
$44.25
$88.50
3 inches
$49.60
$99.20
4 inches
$56.30
$112.60
6 inches
as per ordinance
 
SERVICE CONNECTION (Effective November 1, 1993) ¾ inch or 1 inch meter - $3,550.00 plus meter deposit. Meter sizes 1 ½ inches or larger - based on time and material costs plus negotiated rate for system capital investment.
 
METER DEPOSITS
Chikaming Township: Single Family $50.00 & All Others $125.00.
OUTSIDE Chikaming: Township: Single Family $125.00 & All Others $375.00
 
TURN ON/OFF FEES
Courtesy TURN OFF fee $15.00
Courtesy TURN ON fee $15.00
DELINQUENT Turn OFF and ON fee $50.00 (total)
 
 
· Other Water Service Charges ·
METER REMOVAL FEES
1 inch or less - $190.00
1 ½ inch - $210.00
2 inch - $230.00
3 inch - $260.00
4 inch - $295.00
 
SEWER RATES
Connection Fees
Pay up front
Assessment Due $2500.00
Permit Fee $56.00
GRSD buy-in fee $350.00
Total $2906.00
 
Property owner makes arrangements with approved contractor as per the GRSD Sewer Authority.
 
 
SEWER MONTHLY USAGE RATE
$20.00 per month for 1 unit
 
 
JEANNE DUDECK, Supervisor
BETSY BOHAC, Township Clerk
LIZ RETTIG, Treasurer
WAYNE WARNER, Trustee
WILLIAM MARSKE, Trustee
 
They meet the second Thursday of the month following the Township Board Meeting at approximately 7:30 p.m. in the meeting room at Chikaming Township Center, 13535 Red Arrow Highway in Harbert, Michigan.
 
 
JAMES REIMANN, Chairman
AARON ANTHONY, representing Bridgman City, Vice Chairman
JEANNE DUDECK, representing Chikaming Township, Secretary
JOHN GAST, representing Lake Charter Township
RYAN FELLOWS, representing the City of New Buffalo
ROSE DUDIAK, , representing New Buffalo Township
 
They meet the fourth Wednesday of the month at 10:00 a.m. in the meeting room at Chikaming Township Center at 13535 Red Arrow Highway, Harbert, Michigan.
 
Protect against winter water woes
One of things that the Water Department really does not like to do is call one of our customers and tell them that they have a leak and that their water bill is going to be several hundred dollars. Unfortunately, this happens every winter. If you are not going to be here during the cold winter months, you need to heat your home and have someone check it on a regular basis or have the water turned off and winterize the plumbing. Winter brings freezing storms that cause power outages which can result in pipes freezing and bursting. If the weather is so bad that our meter readers can't get out and we estimate your bill for those two months, we will not detect that leak until two months after that! This could result in major damage to your home and a very costly water bill. Just because your water is "turned off" doesn't' mean that you don't get a minimum billing.
 
"On-line" bill paying - MAKE SURE THEY ARE SENDING IT TO P.O. BOX 40 IN HARBERT
Some of our water and sewer customers have started to use the computer to pay their utility bills. This can be a great way of doing your bookkeeping, but it can also become a nightmare. When entering the payee address, make sure that you use P.O. Box 40, Harbert, MI 49115. If sent to our street address, most times it is returned to the bank after bouncing around the Postal System and by then…you're delinquent. Please save all involved a lot of time and heartache and verify that you are sending your payment to the right address. Thank you.
 
Don't tamper with the meter pits
The water meters and meter pits are the property of Chikaming Township. Section 5 of Ordinance No. 71 states, "..it shall be unlawful for any unauthorized person to tamper with, disturb, adjust, turn off, turn on, remove, disassemble, destroy or damage any water shut off valve, water meter or any other appurtenance of said water system. Any person found in violation of the section of this ordinance shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of $100 and/or imprisonment in the county jail for 90 days, or both."
 
The most common offense is someone other than an authorized Township employee turning the water on and off at the meter pit. This can lead to problems later on, and if the meter breaks, the property owner could be charged not only the $100 fine, but for the cost of the meter. It is illegal for your plumber to turn the water on and off at the meter pit and the property owner will be held liable. Another problem that has arisen recently is contractors running over meter pits and causing damage. Since the contractor is hired by the property owner, the property owner is liable for the damage.
 
To have your water turned on or off by the Township there is a $15.00 fee. Our meter readers will make note of all improper turning on or off of the water at the meter pits.
 
Don't put storm water in the sewers
As noted in Ordinance No. 34 ONLY toilets, sinks, indoor showers, clothes washers, dish washers and garbage disposals may be plumbed into the sanitary sewer. Sump pumps, eave down spouts, footing and floor drains MUST NOT be connected to the sewer system. The Ordinance further stipulates that penalties may be assessed for these "illegal" connections together with the requirement to reroute plumbing to dispose of rain and seepage water elsewhere.
 
Why am I getting a water and sewer bill when I haven't been there all winter?
The minimum monthly rates are the system's Ready to Serve Charge and you are billed every two months whether you use the utilities or not. Chikaming Township's water and sewer systems must be maintained daily so that it is ready to serve you when you need it. Please don't compare your charge here to your charge in the city. It's like comparing apples to watermelons. The water and sewer systems cost "X" to run and maintain. This cost is divided up amongst the number of units served by the systems. In the city you have many more units so the cost is less. It's the economy of numbers.
 
 
 
 
 
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