Faced with increased costs and aging infrastructure, Weatherly Borough Council on Monday approved another hike in water, sewer and electricity rates.

Electricity and water rates will increase 7.5% and the sewer rate will increase $5, a flat fee, come Sept. 1.

Residents had already absorbed a 20% increase in electricity and water plus a $5 sewer rate hike at the beginning of this year, coming on the heels of an increase the previous year.

Mayor/Council President Mike Bellizia explained that council really didn’t have a choice in raising the rates, especially electricity.

“Our electric rates go up. There’s nothing we can do about it,” he said. “We cannot pay for electric unless we charge for the electric. We just don’t have a choice.

“Nobody sitting up here is happy about it, I promise you that,” Bellizia said.

Likewise, repairs to aging infrastructure and mandated upgrades to the borough’s water and sewer systems are driving the increases in those rates, he said.

“We are ultra behind the times,” Bellizia explained. “We are mandated to do so many things with water and sewer. There is a list that is endless. We are forever digging stuff up.

“We need the money to afford the infrastructure,” he said. “We have Band-Aids on things we just need to fix, and we’re going to keep struggling fixing and wasting good money trying to get through it. We hate it.”

Bellizia likened it to going to the grocery store and hating to see the price of milk has gone up again but still needing to buy it.

“You hate having to pay what you pay for milk, but you just don’t’ have a choice. You got to have it,” he said.

Bellizia acknowledged some council members were opposed to increasing the rates, looking for some other solution, but council has kicked the can as far down the road as they can.

“It’s our situation now,” he said.

Councilman Joe Cyburt agreed that council has tried to put off increases, including taxes only increasing them maybe three times in the past 15 or more years, he said.

“We always raise the electric because we have to,” he said, adding that they hemmed and hawed over other upgrades and now they’re hands are forced. “We got to do something.”

Using another analogy, Bellizia compared the current council’s situation to coming in late to a poker game with bets down, money on the table and cards already picked for them.

“All we can do now as a group is look at our cards and try to make the best decision we can,” he said, adding they hate coming to this decision.

Bellizia said he advocated for smaller, incremental increases rather than larger jumps at once to help people adjust.

“I’m sorry we have to do it,” he said. “We know we have older folks. We know we have people that are struggling.

“We get it,” Bellizia said. “We just have to get through it.”

Council approved the increases in electricity, water and sewer rates on 5-2 vote with council members Traci Mengle and Vincent Cuddeford II voting no.