Meter Project Community Meeting Notes
Jun 25, 2026, 4:00 pm at the Legion
Present:
- VAID Trustees Ron Smith, Jane Waterman, Jennifer Moore, and John Colongard
- VAID Employees Joseph Scott (Project Manager) and Sandra Haszard (Administrator)
- 7 community members
Ron welcomed everyone and reminded the group that the grant covers all project costs. Installs are nearly complete and the project is proceeding well.
Several benefits this project has already delivered:
- All connections are now identified — previously about one‑third were unknown.
- Two steel pipes we didn’t know were still in use were located and documented.
- Some leaks have been identified. Of the meters online so far, four major private‑property leaks were found. After owners were notified, total metered consumption dropped by more than half.
- Repairing leaks will reduce treatment costs — salt, chlorine, resin, UV parts, power, and labour.
2027 will be a mock‑billing year. Rates and billing structure are still under discussion. The existing rate model will change from paying for a set volume (with extra charges for exceeding it) to paying for actual metered use.
After the project is complete, owners will pay for the meter in new connections.
Once installed, meters must be activated with a special tool. After activation, details are sent to Neptune to add the meter to the system. Currently, 105 meters are fully online, another 100 are expected online next week, and the remainder by August.
A slide show was presented with anonymized screenshots from the admin system to show how this information can be used to monitor and manage water use.
JS showed the setter, meter, and antenna. The antennas are designed to withstand being driven over, but not to be placed in the middle of the road where heavier traffic occurs.
If vandalism occurs, VAID receives an alert from the software system that detects damage.
A short video was played showing how customers access their data: https://neptunetg.wistia.com/medias/v8ys7iylct
Admin receives leak notifications daily and will alert customers to any new leaks.
SH spoke about billing – more details are in the VAID Meter Project – Report for Community Update Jun 2026
Billing – Key Points
- Rates cannot be set yet — we still need full meter data to know total use, leakage, private vs. system leaks, and the first‑year metered budget. “Until all meters are installed and producing steady data, we cannot calculate the base rate or the consumption rate.”
- Old Tolls & Taxes rates do not apply to metered billing.
- Parcel Tax remains unchanged and is not tied to water use.
- Meters already show major leaks and have reduced communitywide use significantly.
- We need all meters online before we can measure system leakage vs. private leakage — essential for a fair rate model.
- Mock billing will run through 2027; real metered billing begins 2028. Mock bills show hypothetical charges only — no payment required.
- Experts recommend a simple two‑part bill (fixed + consumption) and waiting on tiered rates until a full year of stable data is available.
- Billing frequency options: quarterly, annual, or hybrid. Frequency does not affect leak detection.
- No decisions on rates or billing frequency will be made until meters are fully online, leakage is known, the metered‑year budget is set, and mock billing is complete.
A community member mentioned that several people have comments or concerns but prefer not to attend meetings or reach out directly. If this sounds like you, please get in touch. Your input matters, and we want to hear from you!
