"An Alabama town is at risk of losing water access after it disputed rate rises and recent charges by a neighboring water board. The mayor says customers are being “bamboozled.”"
"CAMP HILL, Ala.—A dispute over soaring water bills for this town’s 1,000 residents has ended up in court this summer after Mayor Messiah Williams-Cole said that his town’s water contract has been violated by its neighbors in Dadeville, who control the flow.
The water woes began in January, when a water main break sent Camp Hill’s costs spiking. The leak was promptly repaired, the mayor said, but when subsequent bills remained elevated, he reviewed past charges. Williams-Cole, who at 26 is one of the youngest serving mayors in Alabama, found what he said are years of rate hikes and late charges by Dadeville that violate the terms of the water contract.
After bringing that to the attention of Dadeville water officials, Williams-Cole said he received a letter May 13 threatening to terminate the town’s water service six days later. Dadeville officials contend that the threatened cutoff was about nonpayment and a deteriorated water system in Camp Hill.
Dadeville purchases enough water for its customers and Camp Hill’s from nearby Alexander City, paying $1.58 per 1,000 gallons. Under a 2012 contract that remains in force, Camp Hill then buys its water supply from Dadeville for $2.35 a gallon. The contract, which Williams-Cole shared with Inside Climate News, does not permit late fees and specifies that rates would increase only “in accordance with the costs of the water to the Board as purchased from the City of Alexander City.”"
Lee Hedgepeth reports for Inside Climate News June 12, 2025.
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