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Prescott updates AMI meter replacement: 10,266 meters changed, app signups growing
Summary
City staff reported progress on the automated metering infrastructure (AMI) rollout, including meter counts, funding and customer enrollment in the usage app. Officials noted customer pushback and billing questions and described outreach plans.
Prescott city staff told the City Council Subcommittee on Water Issues on Oct. 7 that the city’s automated metering infrastructure project is proceeding on its multi-year schedule, with more than 10,000 meters replaced and customer enrollment in the usage app increasing.
Nathan Graham, water operations superintendent, said the council approved the AMI program on Sept. 26, 2023, to replace roughly 27,018 meters with Badger meters and Orion cellular endpoints. The project replaces the older drive-by read system and supports a customer-facing app for near–real-time usage monitoring and leak alerts.
Graham reported that 10,266 meters had been replaced as of Sept. 10 and that the installation rate is about 600 meters per month. He said the city has 1,223 customers signed up for the Ion Water app, which he described as roughly 12% of the customer base; Graham characterized that figure as in line with national averages. Tracy Beasley, the city’s Water Resources Project Manager, later told the subcommittee that outreach and events had elevated sign-ups and that the program’s penetration had grown to more than 30% at one point in the rollout.
Funding for the project comes from a $12.5 million capital-improvement allocation, Graham said. The city also received a $3 million WIFA grant with a required local match; Graham stated the grant funding has been reimbursed and indicated the WIFA funds were included within the $12.5 million figure.
Graham said the program started March 15, 2024, in Chino Valley and has proceeded by route-based zones. He described the installation sequencing and gave a multi-year schedule for completing remaining route weeks through 2027. The city is buying meters as needed under contract with price protection, he said.
Council members raised operational and customer-relations issues. Councilwoman Freeworth asked staff to add addresses to the project list for clarity. Several members and staff discussed customer pushback, including health concerns about cellular devices and perceived bill increases after meter replacements. Graham said staff were using prepared information to help callers and that, on average, customers are without water about 10 minutes during a meter swap. He said cell coverage has not significantly hindered reads: “Every meter we put in, we are getting reads,” Graham said.
Councilman Gamboji praised the app and urged the city to develop usage benchmarks to help customers conserve. “We could kind of look and benchmark and see what numbers are out there that we could make suggestions on how to conserve water,” Gamboji said, and invited staff to demonstrate the app after the meeting.
Staff described outreach steps: 60–90 day mailed notices before crews enter a neighborhood, door hangers after replacements with QR codes and signup instructions, occasional off-cycle installs for users with special needs, and public events such as a farmers market booth and planned library partnership. Beasley said the city ran radio public-service announcements and planned recurring public events to encourage enrollment in the app and explain rebate programs and conservation tools.
No formal votes were taken on the AMI program during the subcommittee meeting.
