Installation of new automated water meters will begin Wednesday in homes in the northwest section of Emporia and last until Thanksgiving.
Residents will be without water for about 20 minutes while the meter is switched out. Crews will knock on doors to inform residents before shutting the water off. If no one is home, the work will be completed and a notice will be left.
There is no cost to residents for meter replacement, though some households may see higher water bills due to increased accuracy.
“The older meters tend to not measure all the water,” said City Clerk Susan Mendoza. “The new meters will be more accurate. But overall the impact of the switch is minimal.”
The city has never had a meter replacement program. Many of the existing meters are 20 years old and some date back to the 1970s.
On Aug. 4, the Emporia City Commission approved a $1.54 million contract with Mueller System to provide and install 9,000 new radio-read water meters. The North Carolina-based company will replace one-third of the city’s meters this year and get the others done the next two years. They are charging the city $15 in labor per meter.
To read complete story see the print edition or the online print edition.
coach (anonymous) says...
why are they starting in the nw section when the oldest outdated meters are on the south side of town. first they target the central part of town as being trashy and only do the cleanup there and now they choose to give to the rich and keep old meters for the middle class.
October 5, 2010 at 1:11 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
ClassicNotOld (anonymous) says...
Great comment, Coach!!!!
October 5, 2010 at 1:25 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
justthefacts (anonymous) says...
Put your big girl panties on and get a life. If this is all you can complain about, sheesh! Look at it this way, the older meters are probably the most "generous" in not counting the cubic feet accurately. You have a reprieve for a while from higher bills which I'm sure you will complain about when that happens as well.
October 5, 2010 at 2:58 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
pencilguy (anonymous) says...
justthefacts,
just a thought: couldnt those meter readers also charge extra?
October 5, 2010 at 3:24 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
methusla (anonymous) says...
I have a question, If these new technologicaly accurate meters are so accurate and trust worthy, Why do they still have the old style manual read out on them ?
And if a human meter reader drives by too fast, will a reading still be redistered and will the reading be absolutely accurate and can the City absolutely guarantee the accuracy of the readings ?
What about a leak at the water main or the line from the water main to the meter, will the new meters detect that also and whose responsibility will it be to fix that problem and who will bear the cost of that, the property owner or the City ?
Seems like 1.54 million dollars for new technologically advanced and supremely accurate meters, that still have the manual read out on them is kinda redundent to me.
And how are the citizens who use and pay for city water, know if the new meter isn' t giving a false signel or reading and how will the city and the customer know if the meter reading of the new meter is not faulty ?
I may be Emporias' " Crank-in-Chief ", but whenever government says that they are going to spend a large sum of money in order to do something that will bring more revenue into City coffers and save the citizen taxpayer money by illiminating past errors or problems I tend to be supremely skeptical and wonder, as to how much more it is going to cost me and every other taxpayer or City service user in the long run !
Besides the government, Federal, State, County and Local hasn' t given me much to, not, be skeptical or suspect about .
October 5, 2010 at 3:33 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
lowereastside (anonymous) says...
I agree with Coach, again, why the NW? They won't be able to read mine from the truck with the new meter because my water meter has sunk down in the ground a good 8". The meter reader has to get down on their knees now to read it because it is that far below ground level. I live in the S.E. corner and we have no modern updates here. Our street is crumbling and sinking in and still no proper ditches or sidewalks. It gets a little disgusting watching the city pave and repave and build new curbs and paint lines over and over again on the West side and do nothing on the Southeast side. Of course none of our city fathers live over here either so why should they care. Out of sight out of mind.
October 5, 2010 at 5:09 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
poolguy (anonymous) says...
Is it not possible that the city is basing where they start based on where the most water is used?
Consider for a moment the housing in the NW corner of town. That corner of town is where all the new big fancy homes are that probably have big whirlpool tubs and multi-head showers and big swimming pools in the backyard. I can see that area of town using the biggest percentage of water.
October 5, 2010 at 6:37 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Steve_Corbin (anonymous) says...
Good point poolguy.
Those who get the new meters last should consider themselves lucky.
I'd bet a dollar too a dog biscuit, that no-ones bill will go down with the new meters.
October 5, 2010 at 7:04 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
hottopics (anonymous) says...
I agree with Steve, we won't see anything for that 1.54 MILLION dollars except for higher water bills. They are already HIGH as it is. You would think of the City has 1.54 MILLION dollars to spend, it would use it better.
Not to mention, does this put a few city workers out of jobs since they won't be walking house to house anymore? Will they charge us less for the savings on a few jobs that will be obsolete?
October 5, 2010 at 10:13 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
mslater (Matt Slater) says...
"The new water meters are going to cost $1.54 million, so our readers don't have to get out of their vehicles."
No, I'm sorry, we can't afford that right now. Maybe when the economy has improved, and we are $60 million in debt.
How hard is that to say?
It's a great day in Emporia, KS!
Matt
October 5, 2010 at 11:43 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
mslater (Matt Slater) says...
are = aren't
October 5, 2010 at 11:43 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
reddog (K. B. Thomas Jr.) says...
The big water bill scam--it does not take 2 million dollars to manage the water fund. Even Commissioner Bob Agler admitted that they were using water funds to use to help out in other area's. This is not right because it puts a tax on the backs of people who can least afford it. As a advocate for people who have no one on the commission to speak for them--the only thing I can say is--WE ARE NOT YOUR SLAVES.
October 6, 2010 at 12:15 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
reddog (K. B. Thomas Jr.) says...
Why was there not a public hearing on this? Or did I miss this one? A lot of times the Gazette does not report things such as a recent attempt to zone Heavy Industry right up against residential zoning and I told the zoning commission that folks in the southeast of Emporia are not second class citizens and we are not your slaves.
October 6, 2010 at 12:41 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
reddog (K. B. Thomas Jr.) says...
If water bills continue to go up, then we the people need to take action to correct the problem. And it all starts at the top. It looks like to me that we were sold a bill of goods and I wonder if there were any sa natey kins going on? Get the Picture.
October 6, 2010 at 12:50 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
reddog (K. B. Thomas Jr.) says...
Any time government does something cost effective--WATCH OUT!!!
October 6, 2010 at 1:01 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
reddog (K. B. Thomas Jr.) says...
No wonder Longbine wants off the City Commission.
October 6, 2010 at 1:04 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Steve_Corbin (anonymous) says...
OUCH !
Just got a $645.30 water bill for the bar.
Guess I need one of those new meters to snoop out leaks.
October 6, 2010 at 7:18 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Steve_Corbin (anonymous) says...
And before anyone suggests we are "watering down" drinks, we are not.
October 6, 2010 at 7:20 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
sail (anonymous) says...
huuu, spending what for what?Im sure that it will be to the citys advantage, they would not be spending that amount of money w/o expecting the upgrade to pay for itself.Guess we know whose water bill will go up.
October 6, 2010 at 7:44 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
methusla (anonymous) says...
Steve,
Noones water bill went down with the old meters, so why should it be any different with the new meters ?
After all the City is going to have to pay for all the gas those ride around meter " Readers " are going to use just driving by and doing nothing, but driving and getting paid there $10 to $15 dollars an hour for sitting and driving !
So how is the new meters going to pay for themselves, when an increase in expenditures for gas is definately going to be added to the equation ?
I see the next expenditure on the City budget as the purchase of electric carts for the meter readers, in order to eliminate the gasoline expense of reading meters !
October 6, 2010 at 9:59 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Steve_Corbin (anonymous) says...
Meth,
Well, if it wasn't the government running things I would say that maybe the number of meter readers would go down, saving employment costs. But who knows?
October 6, 2010 at 11:42 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Steve_Corbin (anonymous) says...
meth,
maybe the city could put the new computers in the cities garbage trucks and take care of two services with 1 driver?
October 6, 2010 at 11:45 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
HenryVIII (anonymous) says...
That's a really good idea, Steve. Why paid another dude to drive around when someone else is already driving up and down every street. For the most part, the truck driver wouldn’t need to deviate from his usual routes/duties. Saves employment costs and fuel costs!
'enry
October 6, 2010 at 11:51 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
methusla (anonymous) says...
Steve,
Steve, that is a good idea, but is way to practical for those who are running things !.
October 6, 2010 at 2:05 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
giggles (anonymous) says...
What the city isn't telling everyone is that the reason the water department has such a large budget is because the guy in charge of keeping the water up to code is sitting on a pile of paperwork that goes undone month after month which incurs large fines. (We are talking thousands of dollars per month.) He's gotten pretty far behind and no one seems real keen on getting him to catch it up to stop the money leak. I heard this from someone who has personally seen and witnessed this.
I certainly think that there is a lot of information that the public has no awareness of but really should...
October 6, 2010 at 5:02 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
methusla (anonymous) says...
Well, perhaps the guy who is now in charge of the Water Treatment plant and keeping the water up to AWWA and State Health Standards & Specs.. is more interested in kissing someones butt, as he did years ago, when he was a Water Treatment plant operator, and doesn' t much care about loss of money or keeping paper work up to date .
I know first hand how things were done at the Water treatment plant, years ago and I would imagine things are not much different now-a-days !
October 6, 2010 at 6:55 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Steve_Corbin (anonymous) says...
giggles,
proof of allegation, please?
I love hearing these excuses.
The truth is, (as reddog states), is the city has found a cash cow in the water budget and it is a hidden tax on the residents of Emporia. It is time for a change in the budgeting of the water department.
October 6, 2010 at 8:11 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
giggles (anonymous) says...
I won't reveal my source as to protect their anonimity, but let's just say this person has first hand knowledge of the situation, and can't really risk what they could lose if they came forward.
October 7, 2010 at 3:28 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
justthinkin (anonymous) says...
All I'm gonna say is that the current Water Plant Supervisor works a heck of a lot harder than the last one did. Hell, the last one was too busy hunting, fishing, womanizing and moonlighting to work for the City - who paid him very well, by the way.
October 7, 2010 at 6:37 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
sail (anonymous) says...
Cant imagine ZIPPY not being all over that guys ass ,if he were causing fines to the city.Cant imagine the EMPORIA MEDIA not being all over ZIPPY if this were true.
October 7, 2010 at 8:06 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
methusla (anonymous) says...
justthinkin
Your are absolutely right about the previous Water Treatment Plant supervisor ! However the one they have now can' t be a whole lot better, as he had his nose so far up the previous supervisors, rearend, if the previous supervisor suddenly stopped walking, they would have had to take them to the emergency room to have the present supervisors head removed from the previous supervisors, rearend !
October 7, 2010 at 9:35 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
scrutinizer (anonymous) says...
Wow! Crap, conjecture and complaints. Why don't you all run for office and see if you can do a better job, since you have all the answers and can find little positive in the efforts of government employees?
October 8, 2010 at 11:38 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
biscuitboy (anonymous) says...
My guess is the old water plant manager got paid a heck of alot better than the new one does. When the old one retired he was replaced by the old chief plant operator who got to do both jobs for little additional money. This situation may have changed since that time and if it has I apologize for not keeping up.
October 10, 2010 at 4:04 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
methusla (anonymous) says...
biscuit,
I would like to say that your brother, who was the chief plant operator for a number of years, should have been plant supervisor and I must say would have made a much better plant supervisor than either " Rhodes " or the current one " Cooper " !!!!
October 10, 2010 at 10:24 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
biscuitboy (anonymous) says...
I appreciate the kind words about my brother methusla.
For those of you who may now realize for the first time who my brother is I want to say the views expressed by me on these boards are strictly my views alone....and in no way should be construed as reflecting his views or opinions on any topic.
Preston Monroe
October 11, 2010 at 6:16 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
methusla (anonymous) says...
biscuit,
I apologize, if I inadvertently revealed who your brother is . That was not my intention .
I said what I did, because I worked with and along side your brother for a number of years and came to trust and respect him, he was always ready and willing to lend a helping hand, give good advice, respected all of his co-workers and above all was always available and never refused to help when it was needed, even when he was away from the " Job ". He would even come back to the " Job " if you called him at home with an emergency situation at the " Plant " ! Which was more than I could say about the water treatment plant supervisor at the time, " mr. Rhodes " and I use the term " Mr. " with no respect intended, what-so-ever.
I know your views expressed on these boards are your views, alone.
As are mine .
I have not seen nor talked to your brother for some time now and certainly hope he and his family are doing well and he is thoroughly enjoying his retirement !
October 11, 2010 at 7:38 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
biscuitboy (anonymous) says...
methusla
No apology necessary.
But I realize my views on these boards are often considered controversial. so I wanted to make sure people realize that my views are not necessarily shared by him. And that is especially true in the area of religion..
He doesn't follow these boards so I will pass along to him your kind thoughts
October 11, 2010 at 8:08 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
justaflushaway (anonymous) says...
does anyone remember the parking meters that zimmy tried to push through??
Do these new water meters have the word zimmy wrote all over them??
I would bet they do, he is NOT to be trusted, with anyones tax money as he is going to buy from any snake oil salesman that will buy him off by offering HIM ANYTHING that will help only him and him alone, as for those who wonder why the money cant be spent for more needed things the city needs to correct, hey, the money was spent on these a long time ago by zimmy and they are now just getting around to drag them out and start installing them, I found it normal that when the city or whoever the city hired to replace them figured out that last week they were not the right ones and had to stop instulation till the correct ones where received, waht a screw up the WHOLE city goverment is and it all starts with the town idiot ZIMMERMAN.......... jmo
whem zimmy came to emporia, he could not even afford a new suit to wear, but look at him now!! emporia is a damn good place to work, and the pay is good if your the HEAD CITY IDIOT jmo again
October 11, 2010 at 9:27 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )