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River Heights outlines multi‑year plan to replace aging water meters and several fire hydrants
Summary
City staff reported a backlog in electronic meter replacements caused by supplier delays and summer staffing shortages; council was told about an ongoing meter replacement program and plans to budget for hydrant replacements.
Clayton, a city public‑works speaker, briefed the council on the city’s long‑running program to replace aging water meters and to remediate fire hydrants that fail testing.
Clayton said a 10‑year replacement plan, started in 2019, aims to replace roughly 10% of meters each year. He told the council supply chain problems after 2020 prevented purchases and that the city is now about three years behind the intended schedule. “We are now 3 years behind where we wanted to be,” Clayton said, and noted staff shortages last summer slowed field replacements.
The council was given a condition estimate: about 200 meters remain to be replaced from an inventory of roughly 600–700, and the unit cost is roughly $200 for the mechanical meter plus about $90 for the electronic read head. Clayton said the city sometimes salvages electronic read units and does not always replace both parts. He summarized: “So almost 300 per meter.”
On hydrants, Clayton reported two fire hydrants that currently do not open at all and four additional hydrants that leak excessively when operated; the city intends to prioritize those for replacement. “The fire hydrants used to be about $1,300. And they’re almost $4,000 a piece,” Clayton said, noting that quoted prices do not include installation.
City staff said they will present purchase orders for additional meters at the next meeting and that the meter and hydrant replacements will be budget items in upcoming budget cycles. Councilmembers suggested the city consider contracting outside crews when meter replacements become time‑consuming because meters vary in depth and installation complexity.
Council members also discussed billing while meters are unreadable. Staff said residents with non‑reporting meters still receive monthly bills; some accounts are billed a minimum or their last‑known reading if a manual read is not possible.
No formal vote was required; council directed staff to include replacement needs and costs in the budget process.
