The Plymouth City Council called a special meeting Monday night to hold a vote it claimed it never wanted to make in the first place.

With development in Plymouth depending greatly on whether the city can get its new pipeline built, news that the project may cost $2 million more than originally anticipated came as a blow to both members of the city council and developers counting on the pipeline's water.

A week before, the city council had acknowledged that if construction bids on the pipeline came in high - the estimated worse-case scenario being $4.7 million - then the council would have to raise Plymouth's water rates in order to fund the project. While that's a scenario most council members rejected, the Amador Water Agency would not allow the bidding process to go forward unless the council began going through the necessary steps to increase rates on water customers in Plymouth.

"It's very possible, if not likely, the bids could come in much lower," City Manager Dixon Flynn explained to the public. "If that happens, then the increases might not be necessary. However, the Amador Water Agency has told us that in order to seek bids, we have to have a financial (plan) backed by rates. That's why we're here tonight: The council has to vote on whether to hold a public hearing on Nov. 17 to raise water rates. Without doing that, we can't go to bid and even find out how much the project is going to cost one way or the other. At this point, we're in the 11th hour."

Flynn's remarks were immediately followed by a statement of protest from city council candidate Gary Colburn. Colburn told the council that any steps toward higher water rates in Plymouth would be an affront to its residents.

"I don't think anyone on the council wants to make life hard on the ratepayers," Flynn said to Colburn. "If the bids end up coming in high, then the council will still have an emergency brake, so to speak. Holding the hearing on the 17th doesn't mean they can't vote down the whole idea of rate increases."

Councilman Michael O'Meara attempted to reassure the small crowd that had gathered. "It's my understanding that no one on the council is going to go for rate increases," he said, glancing from side to side. "But we still need to go forward with the hearing, otherwise we won't know where we're at with the pipeline."

O'Meara then motioned to make a vote on going forward with the hearing, and, by extension, the bidding process. His motion was seconded by Councilwoman Patricia Shackleton. As the city clerk asked for each council member's vote, Councilman Greg Baldwin requested he be able to vote last. O'Meara, Shackleton and Mayor Jon Colburn all quickly voted in favor of the hearings. Fordyce paused before finally casting the same vote.

When the clerk returned to Baldwin, who'd now had a chance to observe how each of his colleagues had voted, he too voted in favor of the hearing.