Moadus, Melfi at odds over meters

By John w. Goodwin jr.

If approved, the water-meter issue would appear on the ballot in November.

GIRARD — Mayor James Melfi feels a referendum to place the purchase of water meters with remote-reading capability on the November ballot will only cost taxpayers more money down the line.

Council, in early December, gave the administration permission to purchase the remote water meters for $1.9 million. Water customers would be charged an additional $5 a month to pay for the meters.

Dan Moadus, a former city councilman, however, has collected more than enough signatures to potentially send the issue to the ballot for voter approval. Moadus needed to acquire 386 signatures, but ultimately collected 450.

“What I found is that most people are disgusted by what is going on in that [water] department,” Moadus said. “I have heard all kinds of horror stories. That department is out of control. I would like to have the meters, but when you have a department in shambles, you have to get that on square footing first.”

Moadus points to the nearly $650,000 in uncollected payments as proof the department is in need of an overhaul.

Melfi said the department does have a considerable amount of unpaid bills, but he attributes that to the overall drop in the economy and the fact that many people simply skip out on their bills. The remote meters, he said, would be a financial benefit to the department.

“It is a very difficult climate, and there are more collectibles than normal, but that is something we look at every month,” he said. “These meters would allow us to have accurate meter readings every month.”

Besides accurate readings, Melfi said the meters will benefit residents by taking the inconvenience of in-home meter readers out of the equation.

Melfi said if the names on the petition are certified by Trumbull County Board of Elections and residents reject the meter purchase at the ballot, the city will continue to operate under the current system, but that could mean the continuance of estimated bills for many customers.

If the matter is placed before voters and accepted, Melfi is concerned that $1.9 million price given to the city may go up with a future bid proposal.

“The cost of these things only seem to go up,” the mayor said. “Once again someone, like Dan Moadus, has cost the city money.”

The mayor points to a previous lawsuit brought by Moadus over the use of a speed camera, Moadus’ support of payment to a contractor who did unapproved work on city property, and Moadus’ opposition to a shredding company slated to bring jobs to the city as examples of the former councilman’s costing taxpayers money.

Moadus disagrees, however.

He stands firm on his belief that meters in the city can be read effectively and at a lower cost even if the new meters are not purchased. He said he has worked out a formula showing that college kids could be hired at a reasonable rate to read the meters over the next three decades at a cheaper cost than the meter purchases.

“If the petitions are valid, we will follow the law,” Melfi said. “We will make a plea to the voters and make it known that we do need the meters.”

jgoodwin@vindy.com