MARIETTA - The City Council on Wednesday approved electric, water and sewer rate increases for Marietta Board of Lights and Water customers, effective Jan. 1.

Council voted 5-2, with Philip Goldstein and Anthony Coleman voting against, to approve the rate hike.

Residential electric rates will jump by 5 to 6.6 percent, depending on usage, while commercial and industrial electric rates will rise from between 4 to more than 11 percent, said Bob Lewis, general manager of the Marietta BLW.

Sewer and water rates will each rise 8 percent for residential and commercial, he said.

Councilman Jim King, who serves as the council's liaison on the city's BLW, said there were no other options but to have rate increases.

"It's understood that the economy is in a difficult time," King said. "But at the same time, we have to look at the overall stability of the system. It was a tough choice, nobody wanted to do it, but we had to do it for the sake of the operation."

But Goldstein said there are always other options.

"My feeling was that they could have looked at those and possibly shaved off some of the increase. This is the worst time to do an increase," Goldstein said.

Councilman-elect Johnny Sinclair, who sat in the audience, watched as the councilwoman he ousted in the November election, Holly Walquist, raised rates without explanation or apology.

"It may be a good business decision, but it's not a good personal decision or a good political decision for the people of Marietta," Sinclair said.

"While I was campaigning for City Council, I literally stood with people on their front porch who sobbed because they couldn't pay their bills, and they couldn't pay their property taxes, and I just thought there's got to be decisions that can be made. I would hope there are decisions that can be made where they can cut cost or postpone a rate increase until times are better," Sinclair said.

In other business, the City Council unanimously approved a new state program that encourages new businesses to locate here, or existing businesses to expand, through the use of tax credits. Qualifying businesses will receive $3,500 per year per employee for up to five years for any two or more new positions created. A caveat is that the jobs have to pay more than $425 a week.

The key to qualifying is to be located in one of the designated areas of the city approved by the state. In general, those areas include parts of Roswell Street, the South Loop, Fairground Street, Franklin Road, Powder Springs Street and some of the older industrial park areas along Interstate 75 and Canton Road.

Mayor Bill Dunaway also gave what is apparently his last speech in office.

Just as House Speaker Glenn Richardson blamed the media for his problems in his announcement that he was stepping down from office, so too did Dunaway devote most of his speech Wednesday to blaming the media, specifically the Marietta Daily Journal.

One council member remarked after the meeting how "bitter and unhappy" Dunaway must be to rant about the press in his last speech as mayor rather than talk about his accomplishments over his last eight years in office.

Marietta resident Larry Wills, who sat in the audience, just shook his head.

"I found the speech very whiney, and it seems like he doesn't want to accept any responsibility for anything that's happened in the last eight years. I would have rather that he dwelled on the positive instead of continuing his attacks. I wouldn't consider Mr. Dunaway a statesman at all," Wills said.

In other business, the council awarded proclamations to residents for their service in the city's 175th Anniversary events this year. Awards went to: Kim Gresh and Earl Reece for serving as the co-chairs on the 175th Steering Committee; Mary Ansley Southerland for her help with the 175th Anniversary Gala on the Square; Connie Sutherland for her work in the Gone with the Wind Anniversary and 175th Gala Celebration; and Alice Summerour for her work with the 175th Concert on the Square.