Whitmire water and sewer customers will notice a heftier May bill as the town shares the burden of the $350,000 annual loss from Renfro’s January closing.

Based on 2008 data from the American Water Works Association, the typical single family home uses roughly 2,000 gallons of water each month.

Using that 2,000 gallon estimate, people inside the town limits of Whitmire would see a $5.50 water bill increase to $9.

Those outside of the town limits will see a bigger hike. If customers used the average of 2,000 gallons a month, the water bill will shift from $7 to $12.

For the sewer bill increase, those inside the city limits can expect a roughly $2 hike for every 1,000 gallons of sewer water usage.

Customers outside the town limits can expect a $2.50 increase for every 1,000 gallons of sewer water usage.

“We must go up on our water rates,” said Mayor Tim Carroll.

The town has already cut $250,000 from its budget to handle the Renfro loss.

To make the cut, the town laid off four employees, cut other town workers’ salaries, used less water at both its water and sewer sites, and cut back on testing and chemical use for the sites.

“I do want the people to know we’re not just doing (rate) increases,” said Carroll. “We’re doing cuts. We’re doing deep cuts.”

Renfro, a sock manufacturer, was key to a healthy Whitmire budget before it closed last month, using “as much water as the entire town,” said Carroll.