City Council unanimously approves Colorado Springs Utilities’ natural gas rate increase

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) -- Members of the Colorado Springs City Council voted Tuesday to approve a natural gas rate increase.

Now that it's approved, Colorado Springs Utilities said that the increase will begin Oct.1 and continue through December 31 but will be reviewed again before Jan. 1.

While natural gas rates will get higher, Springs Utilities told KRDO that rates for electricity will decrease during this time; the Council also approved reducing electricity rates.

According to the resolutions submitted to the Council, natural gas will increase by 5.7%, and electricity will decrease by 3.9%.

This adjustment will make a residential customer's overall average monthly utility bill increase by $4.94 -- slightly higher than last year, the utility said -- during the winter months.

However, the utility said that when spread our over the next 12 months, the average monthly residential bill will actually decrease by 32 cents.

Natural gas rates will be higher for business and industrial uses.

The utility advises customers to take measures now, before winter arrives, to conserve energy and reduce natural gas consumption; there also are programs available to help customers who have trouble paying their utility bills.

Lawrence Martinez spoke during the presentations and expressed concern about how the increase will affect neighbors in his southeast side community.

"You're going to have quite a few people leaving their apartments because if they can't afford to pay their utility bills -- which are tied to their rent -- they're required to move," he explained. "They get evicted. On the southeast side, there are a lot of apartment buildings that use gas."

Councilman Wayne Williams said that city leaders are at the mercy of a global natural gas market affected by heavy demand for liquefied natural gas overseas and a decrease in storage and production.

"All of us would prefer a cheaper price, but we can't buy on wishes or dreams," he said. "We have to buy based on what the reality of the market is. So the question is, how do we plan for it?"

Spokesman Tristan Gearhart said that the utility plans for it by closely studying market trends and reviewing rates quarterly, to be proactive and not reactive.

"Rates aren't as high right now as we expected them to be," he explained. "And we're seeing an increase in storing and production. It may not be in time to help us this winter, though."

Councilman Mike O'Malley said that he hopes the utility will invest in other sources -- such as geothermal energy -- which should be cheaper and plentiful along the Front Range.

"In Iceland, they use it to keep snow melted so that they don't have to plow or shovel," he said. "I just want to put out there that we are where we are today, and we've got to deal with it. But we also have to kind of use what God has given us, beneath our feet. Find a way to make it so that everybody profits."

In other Council matters, members voted unanimously to allow the utility to start eminent domain proceedings against a landowner who refuses to sell two easements allowing for repairs and maintenance to the Homestake Water Project, a pipeline the city shares with Aurora.

The utility said that the owner has refused offers for the easements and is now delaying the work schedule.

The Council also approved a $140,000 settlement with a woman who was pepper-sprayed by police during the downtown Black Lives Matter protests in the summer of 2020; Bill Murray and Yolanda Avila voted against it.

"I'm concerned about the number of settlements we agree to," he said. "We settle these cases without ever having a discussion. To me, it's a problem. I can't earn the trust of the public if I can't hold people accountable. This isn't abut protecting police officers, it's about protecting the public trust. There has to be consequences. I take this issue seriously and I want everyone to understand that."

The Council's final decision of the day was to override an appeal from the Planning Commission and approve a rezoning for the 400-unit Spectrum Loop apartment project near the intersection of Powers Boulevard and Voyager Parkway.