for 65 years steve wayne wright has paveed the price for living here in baltimore, but now he's had enough. >> a lot of people are on fixed incomes,. probably 15% to 20% of the city are senior citizens. >> reporter: over that same 65 years, baltimore's underground system of water mains have deteriorated with over 400 breaks this year alone. add in mandatory upgrades to the massive sewage system that treats 250 million gallons each day and $200 million more to fix water systems and billing systems -- >> it's our responsibility to step up to the plate and address those things before they fail catastrophically. then we won't have enough money or resources to handle those in a timely manner, which is going to cause great disruptions to our customers. >> reporter: the board of estimates passed a 9% increase after leery customers called for an audit. their pleas would be in vein. it appears more hikes may follow the in the years to come. >> do we need more rate increases in perhaps, but we're asking for a 9% this year just because we believe with the 9%, we are comfortable. >> reporter: seniors