A water bill increase was the main topic discussed at the Board of Trustees meeting Monday in East Williston. Some residents received notice their water bill would increase by 33% in 2025.
On Jan. 15, the villages of Williston Park and East Williston received the official results of an investigation carried out by outside contracting group Newgen Strategies & Solutions. The water study laid out what action the villages can take to meet the new EPA threshold of contaminant levels of under four parts per thousand (ppt) by 2029 as rolled out by the Biden administration in April last year. The previous recommendation from the EPA set the contaminant level at 10 parts per thousand.
A copy of the water study can be found on the Village of East Williston’s government website.
Now in Williston Park, the median water users (which is defined by 17,000 gallons in a quarterly billing cycle) will increase from $87.37 to $116.28 by the end of 2025. The costs will continue to increase by 20% the following year until 2029 when the village will be in compliance with the EPA’s new standards.
Residents and lawmakers alike were stunned by the amount their rates would raise this year. East Williston Mayor Bonnie Parente was left asking herself a lot of questions that would affect residents of her village.
“If the the new filtration system won’t be in affect until 2029, why do they have to raise our rates now?”, asked Parente.
East Williston residents will be feeling it particularly hard. The village does not have its own water department or water tower. Instead they share with Williston Park, which owns the infrastructure and charges East Williston to use it. The two villages reached a formal agreement in 2016 that stated if Williston Parks rates are being raise, East Williston’s would be raised by the same amount. East Williston residents pay a 10% surcharge, however, in exchange for this agreement.
East Williston residents expressed their outrage at the massive increase.
“In the summer months my water bill is already $900. Now it’s going to be over $1,200 a month,” said resident Marie Grieco.
The Village of Williston Park will be hosting a meeting on Feb. 24 to discuss the ongoing water issue between the two villages.
