Maryville is wrapping up its extensive water meter replacement project this month.

The $2,995,173 project contracted Schneider Electric Buildings Americas, Inc., Lenexa, KS, to replace 4,136 water meters within the city limits. The meters were believed to be averaging a 10 percent inaccuracy rate, costing the city income in uncounted water usage.

All meter installations were completed in October. Twenty percent of the meters were commercial, leaving 80 percent of the meters in residential areas. The project came in on budget and there were no change orders made.

In 2016, it was speculated that the new meters would recapture $389,526 in lost revenues as well as save the city over $40,000 due to the elimination of a full-time water meter reader employee.

Staff commented that it was too early to tell if the new meters were truly more accurate than the previous meters and were also unable to confirm how much revenue was being generated by the new meters.

The city is responsible for making an annual payment of $334,490 for ten years to pay for the project.

Currently, staff is researching a leak detection program to finish the project. The new system also include various electronic functions which will allow staff to detect and fix issues more quickly and with more accuracy.

“The water meter replacement project has gone as planned and should result in improved accuracies throughout the system and provide additional real time data available for our customers,” Maryville Public Works Director CE Goodall stated.