It may soon cost developers $5,730 per home to pay for wastewater treatment plant capacity.

The Manteca City Council will consider increasing the current medium residential density fee of $5,103 by $627 during a public hearing on Nov. 19 at 6 p.m.

Stantec Consulting is also recommending the city impose an automatic annual inflation increase tied to the charge.

The firm also indicated the city should review the fee every five years to make sure it reflects true costs even with the annual inflation hike built into the fee.

None of the 29,000 existing customers are paying for sewer treatment capacity.

That cost is borne 100 percent by new growth.

The city is in the process of advancing separate fee increases for day-to-day operations and maintenance for both the wastewater and water systems.

Those increases will be assessed on existing users.

A just complete audit indicates the two standalone accounts — enterprises funds separate from the general fund — are in a financial hole.

The water operating and maintenance fund is $23 million in the hole and the wastewater fund that covers day-to-day is almost $30 million in the red.

That is the direct result of the city not raising rates for water and sewer services for 14 years and counting.

The increases sewer and water rates could go before the council prior to year’s end.

To contact Dennis Wyatt, email dwyatt@mantecabulletin.com