Water meter ordinance approved, installation planned for early spring

A new water meter ordinance was approved by members of the Onaway City Commission, which requires all Onaway city residents connected to the water system to install a water meter. The ordinance, which goes into effect February 23, also requires proper regulation and maintenance of the devices. The ordinance states that the city will maintain and repair all meters rendered unserviceable through ordinary wear and tear. When repairs or replacement are caused by neglect or carelessness by the owner or occupant, any expenses incurred by the city will be charged to the resident.

THE CITY ALSO will have the right to access the meter for readings, repair, or inspections. That will mean city employees will need to enter the homes of water customers ?at reasonable hours,? the ordinance states. The meters only can be installed by the city or a licensed plumber.

All customers connected to the city water system will need a meter installed and connected to the system within 90 days of being notified by the city. Any violation of the ordinance will constitute a misdemeanor charge.

Crews will be taking digital photos of each installed meter in case there are tampering allegations later.

City manager Joe Hefele worked with DPW foreman Clayton Dunn to draft the key points for the reading, installation and care of the meters and forwarded them to city attorney Mike Vogler, who presented a proposed ordinance to the commission at their meeting Monday. The ordinance was approved unanimously.

HEFELE WAS putting together the final details of the meter installation budget, and had requested the state plumbing division reduce the permit application fee of $35 per meter installed. Instead, fees are going up and the city will do what it can to get the project moving along at a quicker pace to save money.

?I wrote a letter to Mike Evans, who is the assistant director of the plumbing division in Lansing, requesting that the state consider lowering the per application fee from $35 to something a little more reasonable, since we are doing the entire community and the total cost of that $35 apiece was going to be pretty overwhelming to our water fund,? said Hefele at Monday?s city commission meeting.

?I explained to him that we were in the process of putting in a sewer system and that the residents were getting hit with a new bill, so that raising water rates in order to come up with the money to pay that was not an option, because it already was somewhat of a hardship on people as it was.?

Evans returned Hefele’s call on Friday and said it was not possible to reduce the fee. ?It is pretty cut and dried,? Hefele said. ?The mayor and I discussed that with Senator (Jason) Allen, and really, their hands are tied when it comes to state codes.?

EVANS DID inform Hefele that the fee will see a $20 increase April 1. At 500 meters, Hefele said that would be an increase to the city of $10,000. Hefele believes this project needs to be put on a f

ast track, but without delaying any sewer connections by the city crew. ?The bottom line is, everything needs to happen quickly to at least give us a chance to do that,? said Hefele.

A letter detailing the city?s plans, along with a slip allowing city crews to install meters was to be mailed out. Failure to return the permission slips will cost $20, to cover the extra costs.

In other business:

? Hefele is in the process of determining what it will take to make the third floor of the courthouse open to office space. Once that is determined, the city must determine how much it will cost.

? The Stepping Stones Garden Club received permission to use Maxon Field for its fall event. The date will be September 2.