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Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend February 23, 2006 The price of water just went up Residents of the Meadows retirement community will pay thousands for a rebuilt water system By BUFFY POLLOCK for the Mail Tribune CENTRAL POINT — City Council members are expected to sign off Thursday on a recently rebuilt water system in the Meadows retirement community off Freeman Road. The new system, approved last fall as part of a local improvement district, will cost owners of each of the 266 homes in the planned unit development a little more than $3,600. Residents hope completion of the project marks the end of recurring problems with leaking and collapsed pipes and complaints from neighbors sharing a single meter. Each home now has its own meter, meaning residents pay for actual water consumption rather than an overall average. Nonetheless, some residents will have difficulty paying for their portion of the new system. The project initially was estimated to cost about $960,000. City Administrator Phil Messina said Wednesday that costs had been slightly higher, at more than $993,000, because of some unexpected additional work to roads in the park that "weren’t built to city street standards and didn’t handle construction very well." Advertisement Residents must pay the full amount or apply for a payment plan by March 31. Residents may make quarterly payments for 10 years beginning July 1 at 6.5 percent interest. Finance Director Jill Turner said residents age 62 and older with annual income of less than $34,000 could apply for a state program for deferring special assessments. Those younger than 62 who are unable to pay would have a lien placed on their property. Meadows homeowner Tina Carrara said she is one of several homeowners unable to afford the assessment and ineligible for assistance. "If you’re 62 and older, you can defer," Carrara said. "But I’m 55 and on disability. All I can do is borrow and pray nothing else comes up." Carrara said she and other residents bought a home in the private community without being informed of the defective water system. Meadows management in the fall said the system had had more than three dozen big leaks since 1992. Carrara bought her home in 2002 and said problems were not disclosed regarding the water system which she assumed to be the responsibility of the city, which provides water. "I moved here to get away from the big bills in the old house. This was supposed to be my peace and quiet. No one said a word about the water system and they knew � they had to know that it was defective," said Carrara. Carrara said city officials voiced a desire in the fall to ensure all residents found an affordable repayment option. "They told us they were going to try to find something for people between 55 and 62 � the finance lady was going to help us and work with us. Did we hear back from her? No!" Meadows Association president Rosie Smith acknowledged that some residents would have difficulty repaying the assessment. No one, however, would be forced to move out over a lien being assessed. "The city is going to have a financing program for those who can’t come forward and pay it all at once," Smith said. "So it seems like there will be some options, unfortunately there will definitely be some people in here, no matter how it goes, where it’s going to be hard for them." Smith said the new payment methodology would be a fair means of assessing water costs per household. A new system void of leaks is nice, too, she said. "I think, regardless of how they plan to repay the assessment, everyone is happy that we’re up on the new system and we were able to bring things up to par," Smith said. "If there’s a leak in those lines now, it’s going to be the city’s responsibility � rather than ours. Before, we had some pretty expensive repairs that were tough to pay." Buffy Pollock is a freelance writer living in Medford. E-mail her at [email protected]. Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2006 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback www.bingo.com Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker Custom Build Computers Computer Security Discount Hotel Reservations Debt Consolidation Generic Viagra Windermere Van Vleet Deep Muscle Stimulator Sports Equipment Online Casino Reviews Online Bingo Entertainment Guide Online Casino Fundraisers Sudoku Online Casinos Canada Advertisement s Advertisement