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Voters on Tuesday approved the Metropolitan ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ Sewer District’s proposal to take on $500 million in debt as it finances $1.58 billion in looming upgrades — sparing customers steep bill increases over the next four years.

The ballot measure in ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ and ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ County — called Proposition Y — passed with 81.6% approval. The item presented voters with a yes-or-no choice on whether the wastewater utility should use $500 million in bond financing for some upcoming system improvements, required by law, and pay back the debt over 20 to 30 years.

Customer bills are still going up, but they won’t rise as drastically as they would have if the measure was defeated.

By 2024, for instance, the two options outlined by Proposition Y could result in an approximate difference of $24 a month for a typical resident’s monthly bill. Through the next four years, ordinary payments at a single-family home now look poised to rise about 3% annually, from $56.40 to $62.59 per month. If Proposition Y was rejected, the same bills would be expected to increase by close to 15% each year, reaching $86.12 per month by 2024.

The trade-off comes through interest paid over time. With the proposition’s apparent passage, MSD customers will now pay more in the long run, as interest accrues. Leading up to the election, MSD officials said the measure reflected a choice akin to buying a house, and deciding whether to pay a large sum of cash upfront, or a smaller initial amount that is ultimately made larger after interest.

Some area residents said Proposition’s Y passage was expected, but lamented what they saw as an unsavory set of choices.

“It’s like asking, ‘Do you want us to kick you in the shins once, or do you want us to kick you in the shins twice?’� said Tom Sullivan, a University City resident who monitors MSD operations. “I think you pretty well know what the answer’s going to be.�

Tuesday’s vote affects only payment plans, and has no bearing on the work that awaits MSD. The wastewater utility is on the hook for wide-ranging improvements mandated through a nearly decade-old legal agreement reached with the Environmental Protection Agency, and the nonprofit Missouri Coalition for the Environment, after years of raw sewage discharges into local waterways.

The $1.58 billion in related investments over the next four years will go toward an expansive list of about 300 projects aimed at eliminating sewer overflows and boosting area water quality.

Five other MSD-related items also filled out local ballots, largely outlining procedural changes and adjustments to language in the utility’s charter.

All of those measures passed as well.

One item will change some of the charter’s 1950s-era wording that MSD officials described as “outdated.â€� Another proposal will conditionally lift a requirement that ordinances be approved by two board members from both ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ and ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ County.

A third item will adjust the timeline and eligibility for individuals to vote on rate changes. A fourth matter raises compensation to a maximum of $625 per year for trustees and commission members who attend public MSD meetings. And lastly, another item will allow the utility to use the same auditing firm for more than five consecutive years.

Though he didn’t believe any of the down-ballot items would have great impact, Sullivan said he didn’t appreciate having 16 charter changes squeezed into five propositions.

“That’s just not the way to present things to voters,� he said. “I think they pass because people assume there’s a need for them.�