By Karen Vance
Enquirer contributor

MILFORD - Residents of Milford could see their utility bills go up $6 per month this year.

Tonight, City Council will discuss creating a stormwater utility to allow the Clermont County city to build and maintain a system for dealing with water run-off.

"We don't really have a system now, and there are a lot of places in the city that are just inundated with water when we have severe rains," said Councilman Jim Gradolf, chairman of the Public Works Committee, which created a Stormwater Advisory Committee of citizens to study the problem.

The city has seen three 100-year storms (storms that would normally occur only once in 100 years) in the last two years and, in 2001, lost a police cruiser to flooding, Gradolf said.

The proposal, which will likely be voted on Feb. 17, is the result of two years of work, including three public meetings, but this is its first reading before council, said Sara Imhulse, assistant to the city manager.

If it passes, Milford would join Mason, Forest Park, Loveland and Cincinnati in having such a utility.

The proposal would charge all residents living in one- and two-family homes a rate of $6 a month. Businesses are assessed a proportional rate based on how much impervious surface, such as parking lots, they have, Imhulse said.

The city expects to generate $540,000 each year, with funds paying for installation of storm drains and pipes that would take runoff to the Little Miami River. The city's master plan has highlighted five areas that require immediate attention, she said.

It would also provide for regular maintenance, such as cleaning catch basins on a regular schedule instead of only after it rains. That should also prevent some flooding, Imhulse said.

Gradolf said the utility is also necessary to meet new Environmental Protection Agency requirements.

"We're trying to get ahead of it and get into compliance," he said. "But it's an expensive proposition and our capital improvements budget is small.

"We felt this would be the fairest and most equitable way to share the costs," he said.

Other cities' rates

Other annual stormwater utility rates for residential units:

Cincinnati: $26.52 for single- and two-family homes with parcels less than 10,000 square feet; $37.13 for homes with more than 10,000 square feet. (established in 1985)

Forest Park: $36 (established in 1988)

Loveland: $42, but rising to $48 in April (established in 2003)

Mason: $36 (established in 2001)

Milford: Proposed annual rate $72.

If you go

Milford City Council meeting 7 p.m. today in council chambers at City Hall, 745 Center St.