ST. PAUL - The Town of St. Paul will no longer be leaving door hanger reminders for residents who forget to send in their water meter readings.
Council made the decision on April 12 during the last regular council meeting. The discussion stems from a request from a property owner in St. Paul who had been disputing a large water bill. When a meter reading was eventually received, there was a significant increase in the amount owing.
"The property owner felt he shouldn't have to pay the whole bill because he says he did not receive a door hanger," reads the April 12 agenda. The owner does not live at the property in question. It was also noted that a past employee who no longer works for the municipality said he did not hang a door hanger. However, the door hanger that went out was never returned to the office, heard council.
In order to prevent a similar situation from happening again, staff suggested a change to the the process of how door hangers are accounted for, as well as a change to the wording of the town's bylaw. An option to eliminate the door hanger process and contact owners more directly, was also put forward to council.
Coun. Nathan Taylor made a motion to get rid of the door hangers completely. The Town of St. Paul is now about 80 per cent through replacing water meters in the municipality to automatic readers, which means the issue only relates to the remaining 20 per cent of residences.
Once the process is complete, residents will no longer have to report water meter readings since they will be readable by town staff without having to enter people's homes.
Director of Public Works Steven Jeffery explained that the process of replacing meters was taking a little longer than expected, due to some meters being sent away on warranty.
"This is an issue, but we're dealing with it," said Jeffery.
Taylor encouraged fellow councillors to "move toward the future," to which Mayor Maureen Miller agreed. She noted staff time was being taken up with the door hangers, and felt priority could be put on the residences that haven't done meter readings, specifically.
She also requested a wording change in the town's bylaw, to reflect the fact that water fees are the direct result of the consumption of a product.
During discussions, CAO Kim Heyman noted town staff have had better results will phoning residents directly, to remind them about meter readings, rather than sending letters in the mail.
Taylor's motion to get rid of the door hangers was approved. A motion to direct administration to look at the language in the bylaw was also carried.
Spring Clean-up
The Town of St. Paul will once again be going ahead with its spring clean-up initiative that allows residents to bring items with Freon to the transfer station, free of charge.
Normally, the Town of St Paul allows residents to bring unwanted refrigeration appliances to the Transfer Station for a $20 fee. The fee is meant to cover the costs associated with removing the Freon from the units before they can be placed in the metal pile for further recycling.
"A 'Spring Cleanup Initiative' had been started in the recent years in collaboration with the County of St. Paul and Town of Elk Point where the fee has been waived for the month of May for residents who wish to take advantage," according to the Town's April 12 agenda.
The program has been very well received in the past, heard council.
Physician recruitment
Miller reported that she was recently part of a very "promising" physician recruitment site visit in St. Paul.
She acknowledged all the groups involved, such as the school division, realtors, and hospital, who come together to help with the site visits, ensuring physicians who come to St. Paul are a good match to the community.
Miller said she is looking forward to more positive news for the community.
Chamber support
The Town of St. Paul approved a $10,000 contribution to the St. Paul & District Chamber of Commerce during Monday night's meeting. The amount is the same that was provided to the chamber in 2020.
New CFO
A new Chief Financial Officer (CFO) has been hired by the Town of St. Paul. Heyman reported that the new staff member would likely begin work before the end of the month.
