The Mapleton City Council discussed options Wednesday night for lowering water bills that have doubled and tripled in the last month for many residents.

Water rates were increased at the end of July in order to bring revenue up to par with costs and to pay for new pressurized irrigation infrastructure, but the increase ended up hitting residents harder than the city intended. Some increases have been as extreme as changing from a $50 monthly bill to more than $300.

Councilman Brian Wall said some of the problems with the new rates were caused by lot size and usage not being fully taken into account. Users with larger lots ended up taking the brunt of the blow, especially in parts of the city that do not have pressurized irrigation.

In an interview earlier this month, Mayor Laurel Brady said the intent of the increase was to bring each resident's monthly rate to approximately $60.

"It appears that something or some things skewed the model we were using," she said.

In Wednesday's meeting, several rate models were presented for the Council to consider. The proposals would bring rates down while still covering the cost of the service. As with residents across the city, opinions differed over whether the base rate should be increased for all residents, or whether the tiers should be altered to put the cost on residents who use more water.

A major concern for many on the Council was senior citizens, who may be impacted more by higher rates. Wall said these users can be most affected in the summer when more water is used and rates are the highest. Raising the base rate would help even the yearly cost for such residents.

Wall said there is no uniform rate that can be applied across the city because not all residents have pressurized irrigation, but raising the base rate in the meantime would be the easiest way to make rates even.

However, some Council members felt that citizens who use less water should pay less money, instead of paying for higher-using residents.

Councilman Mike Nelson compared the issue to driving a hybrid car or a gas guzzler.

Those who choose to conserve should not be paying extra for people who enjoy driving larger cars and using more gas.

Wall, however, said not everyone has the option to drive a hybrid, just as not all residents have the choice to use pressurized irrigation.

The Council largely agreed that raising the base rate to $25 per month for culinary water would help cover costs while saving residents an immense burden, but Councilman Ben Christensen said he would like to see three different scenarios before the Council when it votes on the issue in a City Council meeting.

Christensen said he felt that raising the base rate would not serve customers well who choose to use less water.

"The more you tie it to use as opposed to a base rate, that's just a better way," he said.

The Council will discuss the water rate issue again on Wednesday night.