LEWISTON – A plan to increase city water rates by 22 percent gets a public hearing on Tuesday.

Water customers will see bills based on the new rates after July if councilors approve the rates at their meeting Tuesday.

The meeting is scheduled to begin at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday in Lewiston City Hall.

The plan would give smaller water users a slight break. Customers who use millions of gallons of water per year will see big increases.

For example, customers using 1,600 cubic feet of water per quarter – about 4,000 gallons per month, typical for a household of four – would see their bill increase about $20 per year.

Industrial water users would bear the brunt of the increase.

Users such as White Rock Distilleries would see water bills increase about $7,800 per year. That’s a 35 percent increase.

The city increased water rates in 2005 by 15 percent. City officials blame the increase on two new water reservoirs on Ferry and Webber roads as well as emergency repairs to small water mains around the city last summer.

Those issues pushed debt service costs alone up nearly $500,000.

City Clerk Kathy Montejo said the meeting was scheduled early so it would not conflict with a possible Lewiston Maineiacs game. Lewiston won its championship series against Val-d’Or in game four Wednesday night, ending the best-of-seven game series early.

“But we’d already sent out notice that Tuesday’s meeting would begin at 5:30 p.m., so we had to stick to that,” Montejo said.

Councilors will take care of other business first. The water rate public hearing should begin about 7 p.m., Montejo said.