Various sizes of water meters are on display at Prince Albert City Hall. (Charlene Tebbutt/paNOW Staff)

By Charlene Tebbutt

New water meters

Questions over new mandatory water meter replacement program

Apr 10, 2019 | 10:21 AM

Two weeks after the city announced a new mandatory water meter replacement program, there are some questions about how quickly a resident’s water can be turned off, and just who does and doesn’t have to replace their meter.

That’s according to Mayor Greg Dionne, who raised the issue Monday night at a city council meeting. Dionne said he heard from residents worried their water will be turned off because they’ve tried to make appointments to have their meters replaced, but haven’t heard back about a time and date.

City Finance Director Cheryl Tkachuk told council there was some backlog when residents tried to reach Corix Water Products, the company installing the new meters, but assured councillors that water won’t be turned off unless staff have trouble reaching a resident after several attempts.

Tkachuk said there have been a few other issues since the city announced the mandatory program March 27, including that letters explaining the new meters came out on April Fool’s Day, leaving some to question whether they were real.

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Tkachuk said the city followed the example of other municipalities in crafting the informational letters to residents.

Dionne said turning off the water should not have been mentioned in the initial letter to residents as it is confusing.

“Why would you tell 11,000 residents a threat?” Dionne asked.

Dionne and other councillors also suggested some residents are confused about whether they have to replace their meter, especially those who have recently installed a new one.

“It’s got to be explained just a little more,” Dionne said after the meeting.

Despite the confusion, Alex Hazenack with Corix Water Products said response to the new meters has been better than expected. Hazenack said many of the company’s staff members were in training last week, which led to a backlog in calls, but the company is now back to full staff.

“We were doing 400 [calls] a day there last week,” Hazenack said. “It’s been a great response from the residents.”

The new program will see 11,000 water meters replaced across the city over the next 11 months to allow residents to track water usage online. The new meters will also pave the way for monthly billing.

Every residence, business and public facility is set to have their water meter replaced under the new plan, including those recently changed.

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Charlene.tebbutt@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @CharleneTebbutt