To the Editor:
When I was a young child, my mother and I lived in a one-bedroom apartment and shared a bed. After eventually buying a house in Trenton and then moving around a bit more, we looked to move to Hopewell Borough, but it wasn’t a realistic option. It was too expensive.
I live here now with my husband and children – who each have their own bedroom. We are by no means among the wealthiest residents in Hopewell Borough, but we are lucky enough to be able to have a home here. Not a day goes by that I don’t think about how my circumstances were, and could be, very different.
As a Hopewell Borough councilwoman, this makes me particularly wary of any policy that could make our town more unaffordable for families beyond our already high housing costs and taxes.
One thing that surprised me about being on council is how clear the answers to some of our most daunting challenges are when I view them through the lens of what’s best for the borough. When the magnitude of the issues with our water system first began to become apparent, I was one of the only council members to vote against adding a $20 quarterly fee to users’ water bills without a more thorough accounting of the situation. I voted for further increases only when I knew that we were pursuing longer-term solutions to our water problems that could lead to lower rates.
That process culminated in the plan to sell the water system. If we do not sell the system, households that already struggle to pay high water bills will continue to suffer as rates inevitably increase to fund needed capital expenditures.
Opponents of the sale have proposed, among other things, further delays to system maintenance to partially offset those rate increases. But, that is part of how we wound up here in the first place: looking the other way for years as our outdated system fell further and further behind.
The idea of charitable donations to offset costs may have sprung from good intentions, but it reinforces an inequitable system by leaving current and potential residents who might struggle to pay their water bills at the mercy of donors who could move on–or never show up.
Selling the system lowers nearly everyone’s water rates on day one.
A lot of great things have come from philanthropic efforts, but what we need is systemic change. I’ve had conversations with families who’ve expressed that the current water rates are enough to make them consider moving out of town.
Our rates will only continue to rise if we keep the utility. A vote against the sale will only prolong the burden on our neighbors and businesses who are already struggling with rising costs across the board. I don’t want my family or anyone else to have to choose between replacing the brakes on their car or paying their water bill.
I understand that some may take the view that selling our utility amounts to “selling out.” But that sort of philosophical objection is a privilege – and not one everyone can afford. Because our community is so affluent overall, I think we sometimes lose sight of that. We should take a holistic view of what it means to help our neighbors and create a more level playing field where everyone can thrive.
Hopewell joins thousands of other towns and cities in recognizing that it doesn’t have the scale to support a standalone water utility in today’s regulatory environment, where demands for new filtration devices and system upgrades are routine. We’ve long ago accepted that conclusion with regard to our other utilities. Every other utility that services the borough is operated by a private-sector company – PSE&G, Comcast, Verizon, Elizabethtown Gas.
Mariah Carey once said, “We’ve been socialized to believe that poverty is a personal failure rather than our systems failing us.” I think about that remark at least once a week, and I think it’s especially applicable here. Most people don’t want a handout, they just want to live in a more equitable world where they can afford basic necessities like water.
Sincerely,
Krista Weaver
Hopewell Borough
