What Are Street Rental Fees?

From the Dallas Morning News by Elizabeth Findell on April 16, 2015 - Dallas Infrastructure: Money Pits.

"One possible method to expand funding for street repairs would be through bond elections in 2017 and 2023. Council member Rick Callahan, however, noted that it would be a long time before money from a 2017 bond proposal would go toward repair work.

He told of meeting on a recent Sunday night with about 30 people in his Pleasant Grove district. They were so upset about potholes, he said, that “I thought we were going to go into the pot and they were going to light the fire. … They were fist-pounding and saying, ‘We want something done.’”

Other financing options discussed included establishing “street rental” fees for the city’s water and sanitation utilities. Those fees would be passed on to residents through utility bills. A 6 percent sanitation fee could bring in $3.9 million a year and a water fee of 5 to 6 percent could add $5.1 million, the staff said.

Initially, city staff is asking for $7 million for next year to begin upping the street work.

“These are hard decisions to make, but we’ve got to be serious,” Mayor Mike Rawlings said. “That means we’re going to cut something. … You’ve laid out a clear path, and now the ball’s in our court.”"