Emilia Teasdale reports in The Columbia Paper that the Chatham Village Board voted unanimously to raise water and sewer rates, beginning March 1, after a public hearing where several residents questioned the need for the increase, Now residents will pay .045 cents per cubic foot of water used and .045 cents for sewer service. The water rate outside the village is now .09 cents per cubic foot for water, and there are special new rates for Price Chopper and the Chatham School District. Mayor Tom Curran said increased costs are the reason for the rate hikes, with the village needing to build a tank at the open reservoir, which has been leaking 50,000 gallons a day for several years. Read the full story in The Columbia Paper.