While Riverside is increasing its charges for water just over 20 percent over the next three years, residents of Brookfield and North Riverside will see slightly smaller increases.

At their meeting on Jan. 14, the Brookfield village board voted to increase the village’s water rates by 4 percent in 2008, and indicated similar hikes would follow in 2009 and 2010.

Meanwhile, North Riverside trustees on Monday voted to accept a recommendation to increase its water rates to its residential customers by 5 percent. However, commercial customers, who already pay significantly more for water than residential customers, will see an increase of 12 percent in their water bills.

North Riverside Village Administrator Guy Belmonte said that North Riverside residents and business owners can expect to see similar increases in 2009 and 2010 in response to the City of Chicago’s water rate increases announced late last year.

In November 2007, the Chicago Water Commission notified suburban customers that due to increased costs for infrastructure maintenance and operations, the cost for water would jump 44 percent between 2008-2010.

That increase did not mean that water bills would be going up that amount, since actual charges for water comprised just part of the municipal water bill.

For example, Brookfield’s water rate in 2007 of $3.68 per unit (100 cubic feet of water) included more than charges for the water itself. Administrative and maintenance costs made up $1.57 of that amount.

Beginning with water bills mailed out March 1, Brookfield’s water rate will increase to $3.84 per unit. The minimum quarterly bill for Brookfield water customers will rise to $38.40 (based on use of 10 units of water).

Brookfield will also be raising its sewer charge, which is part of the water bill, from $1 to $1.04 per unit. As a result, the total water/sewer rate will be going up 4.3 percent in Brookfield in 2008.

In real dollars, that means that a property owner using an average of 30 units of water per quarter will see the water/sewer portion of his bill increase annually by $20.

In North Riverside, the residential water rate will be going up from $3.85 to $4.05 per unit (1,000 gallons). Meanwhile, commercial users will be slapped with a hike from $8.15 to $9.13 per unit.

According to Belmonte, Chicago’s water rate hikes will cost the village $71,000 in 2008 and that the village just can’t afford to absorb that kind of expenditure.

“We used to eat the 2 and 3 percent increases, but in the next three years those increases are going to be hard to swallow,” Belmonte said.

North Riverside residents paying minimum bills (6 units) will see their bills go from $23.10 per quarter to $24.30.