SouthWest Water Company announced March 8 it had joined with the City of Pflugerville in asking for a 30-day abatement of court proceedings to allow the parties to negotiate a resolution in the dispute between the city and the water provider.

The move comes nine days after the Pflugerville City Council passed a pair of measures aimed squarely at contesting a proposed water and wastewater rate increase by Monarch Utilities, a subsidiary of SouthWest Water.

Monarch Utilities—which is attempting to consolidate Windermere Utility Company, the long-time water provider to east Pflugerville, with six other state utilities—filed a joint motion with the City of Pflugerville for a 30-day abatement in sale, transfer, merger (STM) proceedings before the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.

"We proposed the STM after much thoughtful consideration and years of experience in the utility business because we are confident it would benefit customers in the long run through economies of scale," said Chuck Profilet, vice president of SouthWest Water Company, in a statement. "However, we have listened carefully to feedback from our customers and elected officials, and we are willing to make adjustments. The motion filed today will allow more time for negotiations with the City of Pflugerville so that we may reach an agreement."

Neither SouthWest Water nor Pflugerville representatives would comment on the nature of the negotiations, but Pflugerville spokeswoman Terri Waggoner released a statement following the announcement.

"Preliminary negotiations indicate a willingness by Southwest Water Company to resolve the pending disputes in a way that would not result in a rate increase to the citizens of Pflugerville, and a willingness to participate in a long-term plan to manage the water needs of Pflugerville," the statement read in part.

It went on to say that the city was approached by legal counsel from SouthWest Water requesting a nonjudicial method of resolving the STM case.

Pflugerville City Manager Brandon Wade said last week that SouthWest representatives had approached the city with an offer, but the offer was rejected because Wade said it would "lead us to the same place."

That place Wade is referring to is a proposed rate increase of 62.3 percent increase to water rates and a 33.6 percent increase to wastewater rates. The rate increase is still pending before the TCEQ.

"The rate increase was proposed because our sizeable investment across the state means our costs are significantly higher and can no longer be sustained by the current rates. However, we are open to working with all customers on a mutually beneficial resolution," Profilet said in a statement.

Windermere Utility Company provides water to about 5,000 residents in east Pflugerville.