Using electricity usage as an indicator, Bowling Green’s Director of Utilities believes local industrial
production has started to rebound.
"We have started to see some recovery in usage," Kevin Maynard Monday night told a joint 2010
budget work session of the BG Board of Public Utilities and City Council.
"It is tough to try to predict electric usage for the budget,’ Maynard said. "We think we are
still being quite conservative. We are using the 2008 usage number for 2010 and 2008 usage was less than
what we had predicted."
Maynard said electricity usage fell off dramatically in the last four months of 2008 as the nation fell
into economic recession. The city also lost a big customer in the second half of 2008 when REXAM closed
its plant in Bellard Business Park.
Last spring Palm Inc. occupied the REXAM site and Maynard said that firm’s electric demand has been
growing by the month. He has also seen usage increase at some other plants in the past couple of months.

Maynard said electric usage was also below average during the summer because there was a lack of hot and
humid weather that usually keeps air conditioners running.
Assistant Utility Director Paul Brock said the 2010 water budget is based on a 10-percent increase in
revenue. The extra revenue is being generated by a 30-cent per month increase in the customer charge, an
increase in wholesale rates to customers outside the city and a projected 3-percent increase in water
sales.
Brock reminded the officials that the customer charge and wholesale rate increase were approved by the
board in July and are effective Jan. 1, 2010. Both are the result of a cost-of-service study. Water
sales this year fell short of projections, with a cooler and wetter summer cited as a key reason.
Brock said the sewer budget has a projected shortfall of $167,031 in 2010. "The fund will still be
in the black but the balance will be declining," he said. He said a cost-of-service study will be
needed to update rates.
"We had been looking at a much larger deficit but worked on reductions to get the shortfall to this
amount," Brock said.
Council and the BPU also reviewed projects being planned through the water and sewer capital improvement
portion of the city income tax.
Projects under way at the wastewater and water treatment plants should be completed in 2010.
A request to continue plans for a new electric-water-sewer building at the north end of Bellard Business
Park remains in the budget. However, Brock pointed out both the board and council have the final
decision as to whether and when the project moves forward. Additional discussion is likely when
council’s Finance Committee holds its 2010 budget hearings in November.
Municipal Administrator John Fawcett said there is no money in the 2010 budget for the city
administrative services building project.