A ballot measure in the May 3 election will ask Snowmass Village residents to approve property tax increases to help pay for improvements to the sewage treatment plant.
A new mandate from the Environmental Protection Agency limits the amount of nitrogen and phosphorus that can be emitted from sewage treatment plants. The sanitation department’s permit expired in 2015. Snowmass Village is among one of the first districts in the state required to upgrade its facility. As permits continue to expire, all treatment facilities statewide will need to follow suit.
The Snowmass plant needs a nearly 20 million dollar upgrade. The water and sanitation district board of directors recommends a 20 year bond that taxpayers will finance through a mill levy. The proposal would add about $113 a year to a property worth half a million.
Officials say the alternative would be to raise sewer bills eighty percent.
