KEENE, Calif. — Keene residents are feeling stressful after Union Pacific has applied to raise water rates by more than 1,000 percent.
- Keene has created a website to fight the water rate increases.
- The average Keene resident can expect to pay upwards of $1,000 for their monthly bill.
BROADCAST SCRIPT
For Keene residents, it's a water rate increase that's difficult to believe. I'm Steve Virgen, your neighborhood reporter. It's a hike of more than 1,000 percent. Many in the community met on Tuesday night to discuss alternatives.
“I wasn’t surprised. This was just another round. They’ve done this before. I was disappointed. I think a lot of people were: Ahhh! But I knew it was coming. It was eventually going to happen. So we’re just working our way through it.”
That’s Bridget Beard, who has lived in Keene for over 40 years. She’s upset about the water issues in her community. Union Pacific, which operates the Keene Water System, recently submitted two applications to the California Public Utilities Commission. One is to withdraw as a provider of water service to the area. The second is to raise the water rates to nearly $150 per 1,000 gallons, a hike of 1,323 percent from the old rate.
Community members met at Villa La Paz on Tuesday night to discuss their options.
“We’re in the very baby steps at this point. We just found out about it around the end of April. Now we’re trying to make something happen,” Beard says.
At the meeting, they talked about acquiring legal representation.
“Because this is going on, it’s a mess. I mean this is something that, I guarantee you, is at the forefront of everyone in this community. And we need help," says Debra McTaggart, a Keene resident.
23 ABC reached out to Union Pacific, which responded in a statement.
“Union Pacific has been hauling water into Keene for the last 15 years as part of a legacy deal at considerable expense. As a private company, we have a responsibility to our stakeholders to cover our expenses either through a significant rate hike or to stop hauling water.”
“I used to hear the train and it was a happy thing. I now hear it and I’m just frustrated. Every joy I had. I think trains are beautiful and hearing them was a delight. It now is something that makes me sad," McTaggart said.
Many in the community feel this could be just the beginning of a long fight. I'm Steve Virgen, your neighborhood reporter.
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