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Disabled vet sues Girard over water bills
The water meter is to be tested and the results revealed in court Dec. 9.
GIRARD — Victor Rice says he cannot pour a glass of water or step into the shower without fearing how much the flowing water is going to cost him at the end of the month.
Rice, a 56-year-old disabled veteran, moved to Liberty Township about two years ago from California after separating from his wife.
He says water bills at his Santa Monica Drive home have been too much to swallow in that two years.
Rice buys water from the city of Girard and pays sewage fees to Trumbull County.
Rice said his wife handled the utility bills during his marriage, so he was unsure what the costs should be upon moving to the township. He said the bills would average more than $200 every two-month billing cycle for a home containing only him and his small dog.
Rice said he eventually spoke to some neighbors and learned they were paying a lot less for water in homes with more people. He took the matter to the city.
Safety Service Director Jerry Lambert said he and Mayor James Melfi are familiar with the situation. He said the city has been addressing the issue for more than a year and a half.
“This was one of those deals where he thought his bill was too high, so we checked his bill for four months, and he used an average of 7,000 gallons every two months. That comes out to $61 per billing cycle,” Lambert said.
The city and Rice, according to Lambert, agreed that the 7,000 gallons seemed appropriate at that time more than a year ago, and the matter was dropped.
The city this past summer hired a group of college students to physically read the meters here, and Lambert said Rice’s use went from the 7,000 gallon mark to an average of 18,000 gallons per billing cycle.
Rice said he never agreed on any amount of water usage and feels the city owes him money for the high bills in the past and should be working to fix any problems with his billing in the future.
He has taken the matter to the Girard Municipal Court, filing a lawsuit seeking $3,000.
Rice said keeping pace with the high bills has been a burden and often forces him to go without other necessities.
“I have borrowed all I can borrow. I now owe more on my home than I paid for it in the first place,” he said.
The court has ordered that the water meter in the home be tested to determine if it is faulty. The meter will be removed for testing Wednesday. The results of the test will be revealed in court Dec. 9.
Rice said he cannot help but believe the entire situation is a scam by the city. He wonders if others are having the same experience.
Melfi said there is no scam or any other wrong doing on the part of the city. He said Rice simply has to pay for the water he uses like any other water customer.
Rice said he just wants the money he feels he is owed.
“When this is over, I want them to give me a check personally,” he said. “They have deprived me. If I wanted to invest that money myself, I couldn’t.”
jgoodwin@vindy.com