Politics & Government

Bloomberg Announces City Water Leak Notification System

Mayor Says DEP Program Would Alert Homeowners of Dramatically Increased Water Usage

Mayor Michael Bloomberg dropped by a water pumping station along Douglaston Parkway today to announce a city program that he said would save homeowners money by notifying them of potential water leaks.

Douglaston and Little Neck residents have recently complained that their water bill rates had doubled or tripled following a switchover from traditional to electronic water usage meters.

But Bloomberg said a program developed through the city’s Department of Environmental Protection could help city homeowners to prevent higher bills.

Find out what's happening in Bayside-Douglastonwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

“It is certain to spare New Yorkers aggravation and save money,” the mayor said during a press conference Monday at the Douglaston Pump Station, located on Douglaston Parkway at 67th Avenue. “By applying the most up-to-date technology to one of our oldest and most basic city services, we can ensure homeowners prevent hundreds or even thousands of dollars from going down the drain.”

Contractors working for the city completed installation of new electronic 4-inch by 3-inch boxes in northeast Queens last fall.

Find out what's happening in Bayside-Douglastonwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The boxes, which provide almost up-to-the-minute information on water usage via radio transmissions to a city control tower, replaced older technology that required equipment to be plugged into an outlet outside homes to read meters.

Councilmen Mark Weprin, D-Oakland Gardens, and James Gennaro, D-Fresh Meadows, held a town hall meeting on the meters last month in Holliswood.

At today’s press conference, Weprin said the DEP’s new system could provide some relief for homeowners.

“While I and my constituents may constantly the water rate is too damn high, this program will tell people when they have a problem in their house,” he said.

Lisha Li, a Flushing property owner, said the DEP helped her to locate an underground pipe that broke under her home. She was told the leak could have cost her as much as $100 per day.

“If I’d waited three months to get my bill, it would have cost me $10,000,” she said.

Bloomberg said three-quarters of city homeowners have been transferred over to the new water meter system. All homes should be operating under the new system by January 2012.

The city has invested a total $252 million in wireless meter readers, which provide data four times per day on the amount of water used by each city homeowner, the mayor said.

Under the city’s old system, residents were only notified once per quarter on how much water was being used in their homes.


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 Bayside-Douglaston