City water bills are at their highest ever, but some Evanston residents have questioned whether or not Northwestern is getting a break through a policy that allows the university to use water from fire hydrants for a flat fee.

Mimi Peterson, co-chairwoman of the Fair Share Action Committee, said she photographed NU using city hydrants to water grass at Long Field and various locations along Sheridan Road. The photos later were posted on www.annrainey.com, the Web site of Ald. Ann Rainey (8th).

“This is not a new issue,” Peterson said. “It’s really detrimental for those of us who are paying through the noses to water our lawns.”

Given Evanston’s rising water bills, the permits the city issues for unmetered use of hydrants might look like a sweet deal. A permit-holder pays $200 for up to 150,000 gallons of water and $50 for each additional 50,000 gallons, plus a $300 deposit.

On a standard homeowner’s water bill, 150,000 gallons would cost more than $1,000.

But Richard Figurelli, superintendent of water and sewers, said he does not think the system is unfair.

“You could say (users are) getting away with murder,” he said. “But if you really calculate it out, it’s not a lot of money.”

Because most permit-holders use a “minimal” amount of water, the system does not siphon money from the city, Figurelli said. He said hydrant use usually occurs only when other access to water would be impractical.

“The hydrants are not for use by everybody,” he said.

NU paid more than $1.6 million in metered water bills last year. But sprinklers at Long Field and four locations along Sheridan Road do not have access to NU metered water, Figurelli said, so the university buys permits to use city hydrants there.

He added that since he knew NU would be watering Long Field frequently, he required the university to pay $200 a month instead of the one-time permit fee.

The sprinklers at Long Field regularly use all of the allotted 150,000 gallons, Figurelli said. But if the city raised permit rates to charge NU more, it might price out other hydrant users — such as small-scale landscapers or Boy Scouts who use the water for a car wash.

But Peterson remains unconvinced. She suggested that residents look into hooking up hydrants themselves, as groups.

“When people are paying $500 or $600 for their water bills, it would be of immense value for them to get a hydrant and water their lawns,” she said.