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Public commenter urges city to adopt water‑alert apps to help residents spot leaks
Summary
A resident urged council to adopt a customer-facing water‑alert app (examples: ION Water, AquaHawk) to give residents early notice of leaks and avoid large quarterly bills. He cited dozens of comparable cities and urged leadership to promote the technology.
A Bethlehem resident urged the council to adopt a customer‑facing leak‑detection or water‑alert app so residents would receive immediate notice of unusual usage and be able to fix leaks before receiving large quarterly bills.
Mark Webber said he has raised the topic repeatedly and cited other municipalities that have implemented services such as ION Water or AquaHawk. He referenced a mayor in Southlake, Texas, who promoted an app after the mayor himself discovered a burst pipe quickly because he had alerts enabled. "Without it, he would have found out 3 months later when he got his quarterly bill for a grand or $1,200," Webber said. He argued the city should make similar tools available to help consumers avoid surprise bills and save water.
Webber said he has a list of more than 30 comparable cities using leak-notification systems and told council he would continue to press the issue until he heard a strong commitment from local leaders. The public comment did not prompt a council motion or staff report at the meeting, but Webber said he would continue to follow the topic.
City staff did not offer a timeline or immediate next steps during the meeting; the issue remains a citizen request for administrative follow-up.
