I'll be the first to admit all towns have warts. Some happen to be more visible than others. My neighbor's who moved into the neighborhood in June just got their water bill after having new sod installed in their front yard in July. Let's just say, shocked might be the best way to describe their reaction after they opened their e-bill online. $330.XX for the month of July, and living across from this family, he wasn't even watering his lawn that often, maybe an hour or two twice a day initially just to keep his investment alive.

Image Credit: Paul Shea/TSM
Image Credit: Paul Shea/TSM
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Those that live in Montgomery realize that the cost of living is pretty good, minus the cost of water. We own an above ground pool, and filling that sucker up in the spring we see a bill slightly higher than this one. After that bill came, let's say we evaluated whether or not a pool was a great idea.

It was later last summer, after another giant water bill, a firefighter in the neighborhood came by introducing himself and his family as they had just moved into the neighborhood. He asked us how we liked our pool, how much work goes into it, how much we use it, etc, etc. I gave him the answers he sought and then he gave me our water bill saving nugget we now use when it comes to needing a lot of water.

Our neighbor told me that the local fire department would go around and fill up residents' pools for just a donation to the local fire department! It made all the difference this year for us.

Yes, our water costs more than surrounding communities, see the chart below, but we enjoy living in a small rural community. There's going to be trade-offs with living in a smaller community than living in a larger community like a Faribault. Like a started this off, all towns have some warts, others are just more visible than others, you just make the best of it.

Image Credit: City of Lonsdale
Image Credit: City of Lonsdale
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