PORT ALLEN - City council members approved $250,000 Wednesday for sewage improvements in one of its neighborhoods. The Westside Village subdivision on the south end of the city will have pipes rerouted through the neighborhood and the output on its pump increased.

Residents say toilets currently back up during heavy rainstorms.

The improvements are part of a larger initiative in the city to upgrade aging sewage infrastructure. Officials plan to build a new water treatment plant sometime in the next 10 years.

The city council did recently raise sewage fees for residents. Mayor Richard Lee said Wednesday they will have to be raised again to pay for the needed improvements.

"With the problems that we have, we will probably be asking for another rate increase if not this year then next year," he said.

In all $450,000 has appropriated for repairs and improvements to the city's sewage system.