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Town approves replacement meter for Winona Corp, citing billing discrepancies
Summary
Council approved purchase of an outgoing flow meter ($2,290) and an encoder ($646.86) for Winona Corp's discharge metering after staff reported significant billing discrepancies over recent years and said accurate readings are needed to fix sewer charges.
Town public-works staff presented equipment quotes and urged the council to approve replacing an outgoing flow meter at Winona Corp to restore accurate sewer billing. The meter quote provided in the packet was $2,290 with an encoder priced at $646.86.
Staff said Winona Corp's process results in discharge that must be subtracted from incoming water to calculate sewage billing correctly. "We've got some big billing discrepancies that I don't think it is ... I'm not going to talk about it in this meeting as far as Winona Corp billing situation, but there's some big discrepancies in the amount of money that these bills are for out there," the utilities staff said, arguing the town needed accurate equipment to ensure correct charges.
Council moved and approved the purchase of the meter and encoder so office staff can reconcile bills. Staff acknowledged past replacements elsewhere where batteries on older meters were not replaceable and that full replacement was required.
Why it matters: Accurate metering underpins equitable billing and town revenue. Replacing failing meters is a capital expense but intended to reduce future billing errors and revenue loss.
Next steps: Staff to purchase and install the meter and encoder and to work through billing reconciliations for past and future periods.
