MARQUETTE — The wholesale amount Marquette Township pays the city of Marquette for water will have a fixed rate increase of $1.86 per centum cubic feet — which is one hundred cubic feet of water — for the next three years. The wholesale price increase will not result in a rate increase for Marquette Township customers in 2021, officials say.

The Marquette City Commission and the Marquette Township Board each unanimously approved the plan, which amounts to an 8.1% increase in the first year. Prior to the votes, the bodies heard results of a rate study done by Raftelis Financial Consultants during a joint meeting of the board and commission on Wednesday.

Raftelis project manager Colin Drat said the rate the city charges the township is not related to the rates the township charges its customers.

“This is just limited to the wholesale rate provided to the township,” Drat said.

Marquette Township Manager Jon Kangas said the changes in the rate the city charges the township will not increase the amount customers in the township currently pay.

“… An increase in the wholesale rate does not necessarily mean an increase in our customer rates,” Kangas said in an email Thursday. ” In fact, given the current economic/COVID concerns, we made significant efforts to avoid a rate increase to our customers for 2021. The current draft ‘snapshot’ budget, as submitted to the township board, proposes no change in water or sewer rates to our customers for 2021.”

Raftelis worked with the city and the township to arrive at the rate, factoring in the city’s cost of service to the township, less the township cost of service to the city.

“The city sells water to the township but also makes use of some township assets to provide additional backup and reliability to city customers,” Drat said.

The city’s operation and maintenance costs are related to the treatment plant, pumping, city transmission mains that are considered joint as well as a portion of administration and general costs.

The township’s operation and maintenance are related to the Cox Reservoir, township transmission mains considered joint and a portion of the administrative and general costs. The depreciation and return are also factored in for each portion of the system.

Lisa Bowers can be reached at lbowers@miningjournal.net