The council may establish, construct, control, and maintain, either within or without its corporate limits, sewers, drains, and water courses, whenever and wherever necessary, and of such dimensions and materials, and under such regulations as it may deem proper for the drainage of the city; and private property, or the use thereof, may be acquired either by purchase or condemnation. But in all cases where the council shall deem it practicable such sewer, drain, and watercourses shall be constructed in the public streets and grounds.
The council shall establish from time to time a scale of rates to be charged and paid for supply of water and sewage treatment system to be called “water and sewer rates”, and which rates shall be appropriate, as nearly as may be practicable, to different classes of buildings in the city with reference to the dimensions, value, exposure to fires, ordinary or extraordinary uses, yards, number of families or occupants, or consumption of water. The council may provide for the installation of meters upon any premises supplied with water, and for the payment for the water actually used as registered by such meter. The council shall prescribe by ordinance the manner of assessing water charges, the time when such charges shall be paid, the date when the same shall become a lien upon the property, the penalties for non-payment of such charges, and what steps shall be taken to enforce the payment thereof, and may provide that in case of non-payment that the supply of water to any premises may be shut off or stopped. All water and sewer charges shall be paid to the city treasurer.
The formula for establishing water and sewer rates shall be established by ordinance and the rates approved by resolution.