MOKANE - Mokane needs voters to approve a $2,469,692.40 bond issue to update the city's water and sewer system as ordered by the Missouri Department of Natural Resources.
"If the bond does not pass, it is unlikely that we'll be able to get any loans or grants," Mokane Mayor Pro-Tem Chad Booher said.
Without those outside funds, the city won't be able to complete the repairs and might lose control of the system.
If Mokane doesn't make the improvements, the state could issue fines and initiate enforcement action, putting the case in the hands of the state attorney general.
The courts might then turn over the task of updating the system to someone else.
"It puts Mokane in a position where someone else - a private company - can buy the water and sewer system," Booher said. "We don't consider that to be in the best interest of Mokane."
If this happens, the public won't have a say in rates or late fees - a private company wouldn't be obligated to hold public meetings before making changes.
Similarly, while the city will have to increase rates to pay for the repairs, Booher said the city wants to keep rates low.
"The city isn't trying to make a profit," he said.
Currently, Mokane residents pay flat fees of $25 for water and $35 for sewer service.
The decades-old water and sewer systems have barely been maintained, much less improved.
The DNR order is the result of violations to monitoring requirements and drinking water standards dating back to 2014, when the system was under the control of the Mokane Water Co-op.
The city took over the system in 2018. That year, DNR Regional Director Irene Crawford said Mokane had one of the worst water systems in the 30 counties her office serves.
Bringing both systems into the modern day will involve new water lines and water meters and switching to a low-pressure sewer system.
"The low-pressure sewer system is much more economical and much more reliable," Booher said.
The city has already started putting in new water meters using its own funds.
The city had hoped to bring in lawyers to explain the ins and outs of the bond issue at a public meeting in March, but the event had to be canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
"I know there are questions that people have that I would have liked someone to be able to answer," Booher said.
Instead, flyers were mailed out to help inform the public.
The municipal election was originally scheduled for April 7 but was postponed to June 2, also as a result of COVID-19.
The prospect of failure is worrying, but Booher is optimistic the bond issue will pass.
"We've gotten a lot of really good input, and the people I've talked to, they understand," Booher said. "If it doesn't pass, I'm worried about what it means for Mokane."