Medford residents this month will get hit with the first of many sewer rate hikes to pay for a $300-million upgrade of the wastewater plant.

Medford City Council unanimously approved the two rate hikes on Sept. 5.

A single-family residence will see monthly bills rise from $10.77 to $11.45 starting this month, or a 68-cent increase, and then in July 2025, a jump from $11.45 to $13.40, or a $1.95 increase, for an extra $2.63 a month over the two-year period. The combined increase represents an almost 25% increase over the current rate.

Similar hikes will affect other cities that use the same Medford Regional Wastewater Reclamation Facility.

The latest sewer rate hikes follow two others approved by the council in April 2023. They resulted in sewer rates on a single-family residence increasing from $8.90 a month to $9.79 starting in July 2023, and then to $10.77 in July 2024.

These rate hikes approved in 2023 paid for dramatic increases in service, supplies and material costs, as well as for preliminary work on the upgrade project.

Over the next 25 years, ratepayers can expect rates to rise as much as $35 to $45 a month, an amount still lower than in many Oregon cities, according to the city of Medford.

This city is required to spend $300 million on the plant to meet Oregon Department of Environmental Quality permitting rules, a similar situation that has affected other Oregon cities with wastewater plants, such as Ashland.

The massive upgrade of the wastewater plant, which is located on Kirtland Road in Central Point and serves most cities in the valley, is needed to avoid violating the federal Clean Water Act, which would result in fines or other penalties.

“Yes, this sucks, and it’s going to be a big chunk for the ratepayers,” Councilor Nick Card said.

Despite the hit to Medford residents, Card said the city has no choice but to invest in the plant.

“We’ve got to move forward with this,” he said.

More rate increases will be coming, and the city will use the proceeds for Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act low-interest loans from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Interest rates for WIFIA loans have been high recently, hitting 5% earlier this year, but were at 1.8% several years ago.

Higher interest rates could add millions of dollars over the life of the loans.

The city needs to upgrade up to 60% of the existing wastewater plant next to the Rogue River.

This will reduce nitrogen and phosphorous levels by about 70% and also reduce the temperature of the treated water before it goes into the river.

The permit for the treatment plant is in the city’s name, and city officials have attempted to explain to various cities in the valley the need for the upgrades, which will pave the way for population growth, as well.

If the city doesn’t follow through with the improvements, city councilors could be held personally liable, and the state could place a building moratorium on the region if it ignored the regulations. The city could also face criminal penalties.

The latest rate increase is intended to provide revenue to start repayment for the first $20-million bond this fall to finance the work on the upgrade project.

The fees approved by City Council were set on Aug. 19 by the Regional Rate Committee, which was established by the city of Medford and Rogue Valley Sewer Services.

Councilor Kevin Stine said the treated wastewater that is discharged into the river is currently “mostly fine,” but the city is still required to do the expensive improvements.

“We’re not the only city that has to do these things,” he said.