Upgraded Honey Creek Pump Station Approved

Members of the Grove Municipal Services Authority board have approved spending $9,500 to Rose & McCreary for civil engineering services to upgrade the Honey Creek booster pump station. An estimated 200 new homes could be added south of Honey Creek as a result, engineers estimated. Total cost is estimated at $75,000 to $100,000 for the pump and new larger water line.

The board was told Tuesday at its regular meeting that work on utility re-locations along Highway 59 is virtually complete, and Nov. 15 has been set as the final completion date. ODOT says it will let bids in January, begin highway construction in April, and be finished 18 months later.

GMSA also approved a new policy on customer disputes of water or gas bills. The new process involves 10 steps and was put together by City Manager Bruce Johnson. These include:

1. Customer shall notify the GMSA office manager of a problem within 10 working days of the due date printed on the disputed bill.
2. Office manager will review and correct any billing error immediately.
3. If a meter re-read is necessary, it shall be done within 24 hours of the notice.
4. If the re-read shows an error was made or the meter was not working properly, the reading and/or meter will be changed and the bill will be adjusted accordingly.
5. If the re-read shows the reading was correct and meter is working properly, no adjustment will be made.
6. The customer may request a company specializing in such testing to check the meter for accuracy. If testing shows the meter is working correctly, the customer will pay for the testing; if not, GMSA will pay the cost of testing.
7. After researching the disputed bill the Office Manager will make a decision within five working days after receipt of the complaint. If customer is not satisfied the customer has the right to request a meeting with the General Manager within five working days to dispute the bill.
8. After reviewing the bill, the General Manager will make a decision within five working days.
9. If the customer is not satisfied with the General Manager's decision, a written request may be submitted to have the matter presented to the GMSA Board of Trustees for the next regular meeting. The written request must be made within 10 working days of the General Manager's decision or his decision will be final.
10 GMSA will review the request and the board's decision is final.

The new policy grew out of a complaint filed by a homeowner who received a natural gas bill for $2400 last winter.