Leonardtown council approves transition to Sonata ultrasonic meters for new connections

The Leonardtown Town Council voted Monday to begin transitioning to Sonata ultrasonic water meters for new residential connections once existing master‑meter stock is depleted or sold.

Town staff described aging equipment and the benefits of the new meters during the discussion: officials said the currently installed meters and registers are reaching the end of their expected service life, that the new meters have an expected life of about 20 years and are more accurate, and that a vendor offered a software/antenna package the town could run in parallel with existing systems at no initial software cost. “They also, these new meters have a 20 year life expectancy, and they're also 98.5% accuracy,” a staff member said during the presentation.

Staff told the council they currently have roughly 200 replacement registers in stock and about 1,450 residential customers on meters. The town has delayed a full system replacement because of budget constraints but intends to install the Sonata meters in all new builds going forward so builders supply the new hardware at construction. Staff said the Sonata meters cost about $55 more per unit than the existing meter model, and that the town would not need to replace every existing meter at once; the transition could be phased in over time.

Councilmember (unnamed) moved to begin using the Sonata ultrasonic meter for all new homes once the town's stock of legacy master meters is depleted or sold. The motion carried by voice vote. Staff said they will continue to use existing registers for repairs until stock is exhausted and will keep the council updated on supply and costs.

The council's action directs staff to purchase Sonata meters for new connections and to run the new meter software in parallel with existing systems as part of a phased transition.