Water customers staring at 83.4 percent increase HOWELL - Customers of the Park-way Water Co. got some bad news recently when it was revealed that a judge has issued a preliminary ruling that supports an 83.4 percent increase in service rates. Representatives of Parkway Water were seeking a 105 percent increase in the rates paid by the firm's 1,800 customers in the Ramtown section of Howell. Parkway Water Co. is a private firm based in Marlboro. Customers presently pay $2.55 per 1,000 gallons of water. If the requested increase was approved in its entirety, that rate would rise to more than $5.10 per 1,000 gallons. New Jersey Board of Public Utilities spokesman Eric Hartsfield said that if the increase goes into effect, the average Parkway Water customer will see a hike of about $294 that will bring the annual water bill to $646 per year. Hartsfield noted that the process is not complete. "The key to remember is that it still has to go before the BPU's Board of Commis-sioners," he said, noting that the commissioners can modify, accept or reject the proposed increase. Hartsfield said BPU commissioners could reach a final decision on the rate hike in late July or early August. Members of the Township Council offered comments on the pending rate hike during their June 27 meeting. Township Attorney Thomas Gannon said the municipality will challenge the decision. "It's not over yet," Gannon said. Mayor Joseph DiBella reiterated his displeasure with the utility. "What Parkway Water has requested is totally unconscionable," the mayor said. "What we asked for was to protect the interest of the ratepayer. I'm frustrated as mayor that we have no control of this." Earlier in the process the mayor and council lobbied for a smaller increase and encouraged residents to contact New Jersey Ratepayer Advocate Seema Singh. Residents presented their comments on the proposed rate hike during public hearings. Resident James O'Brien addressed the council at the June 27 meeting. He said the testimony and letters that had been presented in opposition to the proposed rate increase were either "lost, misplaced or devalued" by Parkway Water officials. He urged township officials to continue to fight the increase. Parkway Water officials have previously said the higher rates are needed as the firm continues to buy water from other sources in order to serve its customers in Howell. A deal to sell the water company and its customer base in Howell to the Brick Township Municipal Utilities Authority fell apart after officials in Brick became worried about possible future litigation stemming from radium contamination that Parkway Water had been dealing with over the past three years. The company disclosed that some of its wells had been contaminated by higher than acceptable levels of gross alpha radio-nuclides. - Larry Hlavenka Jr.