By Destiney Dingess, The Herald-Dispatch
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — Huntington Sanitary Board’s second phase of its rate increase staggered over four years will go into effect for all usage after Jan. 1, 2024. The increase will show on residents’ bills in March.
Huntington City Council approved the rate increase last December in addition to a $200 million plan to upgrade Huntington’s public sanitary sewer system.
About $40 million of the plan is from American Rescue Plan Act funds, with $160 million in state and federal grants and loans making up the rest.
At the time, the city’s sewer system was at 98% capacity and under threat of a federal takeover for repeated water quality violations. The Huntington Sanitary Board has said the upgrades would bring the system into compliance with state and federal regulations.
The plan includes separating stormwater and sewer lines along the 3rd and 5th avenues, reducing flooding risk, improving public safety and increasing overall system capacity. Two pumping stations on 4th and 13th streets — through which 80% of the sewer system flows — also need extensive renovations.
