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SATURDAY January 24, 2004 - Subscribe - Contact Us - Rate Card Valley&State Backpage O&E Sports Archives Classifieds Faith&Beliefs Obituaries Revels January 6, 2004 Talent seeks to shore up late payments TALENT - Proposed re-writes to the City of Talent's water ordinance could help the city collect payments, that as currently written, are difficult to obtain. If adopted, collection procedures would change and opportunities for making installment payments will become an option. A public hearing and a possible decision on the revised ordinance will be part of Wednesday night's city council meeting. City Manager Betty Wheeler said in the last 8 to 10 years, the city has had more than 7,000 unpaid water bills. Each month, the city sends out 1,630 water bills, she said. The current ordinance, as written, does not make the owner of the property responsible for the bill if the tenant leaves without clearing-up the account. "If the tenant leaves town, we're stuck holding the bag and we have no way to collect the money," Wheeler said. The new ordinance will make the property owner responsible for these expenses, she said. The new ordinance would require that both the owner and tenant sign an application before a new account is set up. "We want to be sure we're treating everyone the same," Wheeler said. "We want to make sure things are consistent and we collect our revenues on time." The city receives nearly $1.2 million from water bills each year, she said. The current ordinance was written in 1977, with very few changes since that time. Many sections of the ordinance were not well defined, outdated in terms of how the department operates currently, and some paragraphs did not read well and have been rewritten to be a little more understandable, Wheeler said. "The language was real vague in some places," she said. "And that's not a good practice." If the revisions are passed, Wheeler hopes this will help stabilize the cost and lessen increases in water rates. "We don't want to increase the rates again," she said. "We want to be responsible so everyone pays their fair share." Copies of the proposed revisions can be reviewed at the Talent City Hall, located at 204 E. Main Street. A summary is posted at Tark's Market, located at 215 East Wagner Street, and on the bulletin board outside city hall. The council meeting will be held at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday at the Talent Community Center on East Main Street. DailyTidings.com Home Page Valley&State | Backpage | O&E | Sports | Archives | Weather | Classifieds Columnists | Faith&Beliefs | Obituaries | Revels | Subscribe | Contact Us Copyright 2004 Ashland Daily Tidings and Ottaway Newspapers All Rights Reserved Site Search: .:Advertisements:. RESOURCES - ODOT Road Cams