Long Beach water staff propose meter replacements, AMI tower to reduce losses and drive time

Long Beach water staff told the Budget & Finance Committee July 9 that the utility needs a multi-year meter-replacement program, expanded meter-maintenance funding and a pilot to install an AMI (automated meter infrastructure) receiver on the water tower to enable remote reads and faster leak detection.

"We're replacing, like, whole meters now instead of just, like, the electronics on them because they're way outdated," Austin said, explaining that many mechanical meters are 20-plus years old and replacement meters will improve accuracy. He told the committee the vendor will provide a prioritized list of meters by serial number and put together bulk pricing so the town can phase replacements across two to three years.

Austin described the AMI option as a way to detect large overnight usage and notify staff: "The system will send us emails letting us know that there's been no activity," which can reduce the time staff spends driving to read meters and help identify service-line leaks earlier. The committee agreed to invite the meter vendor Neptune to present a proposal at a workshop open to council and the public-works committee.

On capital items, staff flagged additional needs: continued valve replacements on Oriole Trail, an inspection and possible painting of the water tower after Dixon Engineering’s inspection, and an unknown-cost booster station control-panel upgrade. Austin said he is awaiting vendor estimates for the panel and backflow testing, and asked the committee to allow staff to include contractual-services and contingency in the draft capital plan until firm quotes arrive.

Next steps: staff will compile six-month billing histories, vendor quotes and a prioritized meter list from Neptune and return with a recommended phasing and cost estimate for council consideration.