Farmington council renews cross-connection contract, approves water-service amendment and buys replacement meters

Farmington’s City Council approved a set of routine public-works and water utility actions, including a five-year renewal for the city’s commercial cross-connection control program, an amendment to the Great Lakes Water Authority water-services contract and the purchase of radio-read replacement meters.

The council authorized a five-year renewal with HydroCorp (formerly Hydro Designs) to continue inspections and record-keeping for the city’s cross-connection control program. Staff said the contract is structured with a 4% annual increase and the five-year total is approximately $79,417.80.

On water services, staff presented amendment number 5 to the existing contract with the Great Lakes Water Authority. The amendment reduces the city’s maximum day usage figure used in the contract from 2,100,000 gallons per day to 1,860,000 gallons per day, reflecting measured reductions in usage.

Council also authorized the purchase of eSeries radio-read water meters from Blue Water Solutions of Auburn Hills in an amount not to exceed $70,000. Staff said the meters support leak detection and have contributed to reduced consumption when meters are read and customers are notified.

Public-works staff noted that running these programs in-house would require substantial staff time and specific certification. "It just requires a lot of time for staff and then you have to be properly trained," staff said when asked about an in-house alternative.

All three measures were approved by the council in separate motions and carried unanimously.

What’s next: Administration will execute contract documents and proceed with meter procurement and installation scheduling.