Politics & Government

New Meters Make Water Bills Rise

After years of underpaying due to outdated equipment, Loma Linda residents will see their water bills increase thanks to new, accurate meters.

Wednesday was the first time Marilyn DeLashmutt heard anything about her neighborhood getting new water meters.

But the news explains why her water bill was running about $60 higher than last summer, she said.

“No one came to our door to notify us. And we did not get a notice,” said the Pembroke Street resident, a retired school district administrator. Without losing her smile she added, “I’m glad I now know the reason.”

Find out what's happening in Redlands-Loma Lindawith free, real-time updates from Patch.

About 500 Loma Linda residents have seen an increase in their water bills because of recently installed “radio read” water meters. The modern devices are more efficient and are reading the water usage more accurately, where the old equipment was under reporting the number, city officials said.

As a result the water bills are going up, officials said.

Find out what's happening in Redlands-Loma Lindawith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Councilman Ron Daily raised the subject at Tuesday night’s City Council meeting because at least two of his neighbors expressed concern that their water bill had tripled, he said.

“The meters by their house may have been 25 years old,” City Manager T. Jarb Theipejr told the City Council. The components in the meter likely, “did not turn as well. So the city has been losing revenue all these years.”

“What happens is, when you open up a meter, inside there is a small fan,” said Konrad Bolowich, Loma Linda's director of information systems. “As water goes across these fan blades they spin the dial on the meter. Just like any mechanical part, as it gets older there is wear and tear.”

Eventually it takes more and more water to turn the fan, he said.

The city has its own water department. It owns its wells and pumps its own water. It’s not yet known how much revenue the city has lost, staffers said. Last month, Loma Linda set out to remedy the problem by contracting with a company to upgrade older meters.

The new meters will not only give accurate readings, they will cut the amount of time the city’s maintenance crews have to spend meter reading. Each is equipped with antennae that allow workers to take readings from a hand-held reader, city officials said. Workers need not get out of their cars.

So far, homes in neighborhoods between Van Leuven Street and Redlands Boulevard, Mountain View Avenue and Poplar Street and homes between Bryn Mawr and Whittier avenues and Lawton and Beaumont avenues have had their meters upgraded, Thiapejr said.

They will be working their way around the entire city, Thiapejr said. Notices were sent out for the first batch of homes. On Oct. 3, more notices will go out, he said.

DeLashmutt said she and her husband, Larry DeLashmutt, never got a notice, but she said they were already making adjustments. They had already cut down on lawn watering, she said.

“The cost can be tough, especially when you’re retired,” she said.

The city encourages residents to find ways to conserve water. We provide you a few tips to get started.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

More from Redlands-Loma Linda