We went through the Alabama Rural Water Association to help us calculate our rates, ... We looked at about eight scenarios to see what effect they would have. We want it to have a minimum effect on our fixed income folks. Most stay under 2,000-gallon usage, so their sewer rates will stay the same. We did take that into consideration.

There are little things you can do that don't add a ton to the price. But builders have a filter when you start talking about changing things. They see more cost.

You can see we're not trying to operate it as a money-making venture, ... It needs to pay for itself, but the Council did not want to try and recoup 20 years worth of expenses in one year.

This is our third year of creating Digital Lifestyle homes for CES, and over the years we've introduced thousands of visitors to a wide variety of new products. This is the place to come to see the best technology out there today and get a glimpse of what is to come in the upcoming year.

In order to be able to operate and maintain the sewer system so that it provides the service it needs to provide, we kind of have to do this, ... I hate that it has to come now with the gas price so high, but it's become a financial drain on the General Fund.

Routinely, people push back initially, but once they're using that can for a month or two months, you can't get that can away from them.

The idea is to meld all of these new technologies into a home that truly offers its resident what every homebuyer is looking for -- peace of mind.

These guys are just getting beat, beat, beat picking up and throwing that trash in the back of trucks.

In our judgment, a court is likely to defer to the city's reasons.