Girard residents will see new water fee on bills this month

GIRARD, Ohio - As people in Girard open their water bill this month, they’ll see a new $10 dollar fee tacked on.

The Replacement Infrastructure Fee or RIF will go towards updating the city's aging water systems.

The city's Safety Service Director Mark Ragozine said the cost of water has gone up recently from their suppliers and when they looked at their books expenditures were outpacing revenue.

“[This is] not a decision we wanted to make .. but one we had to make,” Ragozine told 21 News explaining the city held out for as long as they could.

One of the biggest costs eating up the department's budget is water line breaks. The city has lines as old as 70 to 100 years that often break in the winter. The fees will go towards those break repairs and replacing the lead lines in the city be