OGDENSBURG — The City Council decided Monday to hold the line on the property tax rate, but water and sewer fees will rise for 2009.

"I think overall this was a fortunate budget for the people of Ogdensburg," said City Manager Arthur J. Sciorra. "This was the best plan we could put together given the recent flux in the economy."

The property tax rate will remain at $14.61 per $1,000 of assessed property value, but the water and sewer rates will increase by 6 percent and 6.8 percent respectively. The flat water rate will rise from $223 to $239, and the metered water rate from $2.74 to $2.94 per 1,000 gallons. The metered sewer rate will increase from $4.18 to $4.56 per 1,000 gallons, and the flat sewer rate from $273 to $298.

Councilmen passed several changes to the budget. The council voted unanimously against pay increases for the councilmen and mayor. It would have been the first pay increase for them since 1984.

Budget changes also include reducing the money for gasoline by more than $10,000 and for phone bills by $1,000.

Eliminating a planned 1.5 percent property tax rate increase required the city to produce roughly $57,700 in either cuts or new revenues. According to Mr. Sciorra, the changes in the budget discussed Monday should roughly equal the amount needed.

The ability to stave off tax rate increases in hard economic times is a result of the drastic budget cuts two years ago, Mr. Sciorra said. But because of these cuts, there was not much to eliminate in this year's budget and further cuts could lead to reductions in the fund balance, Mr. Sciorra said. The fund balance was frequently referred to as a "rainy-day fund" during the meeting.

Several councilmen echoed similar sentiments during discussions, but Nicholas J. Vaugh was the only one to vote in favor of raising the property tax rate.

Councilmen were unanimous, however, in support of the rate increases for the water and sewer.

In the 2008 budget, the City Council cut rates for the sewer and water systems, which caused them to lose money for 2008, said Mr. Sciorra. The proposed increases will provide just enough revenue to cover the operating costs and get the systems into the black, Mr. Sciorra said.