BUCKFIELD – Town Manager Glen Holmes told selectmen Tuesday night that the state Public Utilities Commission and the Buckfield Village Corp. have reached an agreement on establishing new water rates, which take effect on Jan. 1, 2007.

No further hearings will be held until January 2008 to see how the agreement works, he said.

The corporation asked the PUC for permission to hike its rates to pay off more than $1 million it owes, in part, for construction of a filtration system for its North Pond water supply. Its approximately 170 customers would pay the highest rate in the country, or about $615 a year, if the request was granted, Holmes has said.

Holmes said the specific rates have not been figured yet, but the cost per year will be lower than the $615 projected. Customers with single-family homes had been paying about $320 a year.

Under the plan worked out between the two sides, the corporation will lower its revenue by approximately $40,000, taking out some of the costs normally passed on to consumers. Single-family homeowners will be charged a certain rate, and apartment-building owners will pay that same amount for the first apartment and half that rate for the rest in the building, according to the agreement.

There are currently seven water meters in town, and those customers will pay for five-eighths of the amount used, or the same rate as a single-family home. Property owners may install a meter at their own expense.

At the first meeting of the Buckfield Village Advisory Committee recently, members presented six ideas to solve the corporation’s financial woes:

• refinance the debt by the town or the corporation;

• seek forgiveness of loans;

• apply for grants;

• default on the loans;

• have the town assume a portion of the debt; and

• continue to work with the corporation.

The committee will meet twice a month through December.

At a public hearing prior to the selectmen’s meeting, there was no opposition to renewing the Buckfield Inn liquor license so it was signed.

Albert Abbott was appointed to the Social Services Committee, and the board approved the committee’s procedure guidelines. The committee considers financial requests from social service agencies.