SOUTH POINT — The village council held its first reading on Tuesday on a raise in sewer and water rates.

The measure passed and must go through two more readings to be adopted.

Mayor Jeff Gaskin said the raise, which is $2 for each, would take effect Jan. 1, 2022.

Gaskin said this move was made because of a number of factors, including everyday costs increasing and rise in the cost of chlorine.

“We use chlorine to treat both water and sewer,” he said.

Gaskin said the electrical system at the sewer plant is in need of an upgrade, dating back to the 1970s.

“It’s antiquated and we need to fix it before we have a major failure,” he said, noting other equipment at the plant needed upgrades as well. He said the village has not increased sewer rates since 2016.

The council also voted to renew their engineering contract with IBI Group and approved them to do a study on Tiffany Lane.

“First we have to do a study before we come up with a plan,” Gaskin said of the road, which is slipping due to a sandy foundation.

In other business, the council:

• Heard from village administrator Russ McDonald, who said the village pumped 22 million gallons of water for the month of August.
  Gaskin said this about three times what a system of South Point’s size should be using.
  “It should be closer to 7-10 million gallons,” he said. “And it costs us to treat that water.”

• Heard from Gaskin, who said the village has finished its new camera system, which will be used by the police and sewer departments.
• Discussed the sewage flooding problem on Billie Joy Drive. Gaskin said village crews will be using cameras “to see what kind of shape the sewage lines are in.”
  “We know we have infiltration,” he said. When it rains, water goes in it.” He said they will be using new equipment to find out where most of the flow is coming from and, from there, they will devise a plan to fix the problem. Gaskin said funds from the American Recovery Plan will be used for this project.

— The next meeting of council is set for 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 5