(GILBERT, AZ.) – This week drew new concerns and important updates to the spotlight.
An update provided by Kimley-Horn, the consulting firm contracted by the Town of Gilbert to perform an audit on the town’s new water meters from Mueller, was presented at the Mar. 3 regular council meeting.
The update included a progress report on the audit by Kimley-Horn’s Project Manager Tyler Kay and Public Engagement Representative Paige Helfinstine. The team stated that the audit is roughly 75 percent complete at this time, and final results are expected to be announced on Apr. 7 of this year.
Photo Credit: Teri Tracy
The goal of the audit is to cross-examine data from 2025 to determine whether meters and their radios are measuring water and transmitting data correctly and to assess whether the town’s utility systems were billing correctly, as well as ensure current meters are functioning properly through rigorous lab testing.
Photo Credit: YouTube / Kimley-Horn
As of now, Helfinstine and Kay report no systemic malfunctions, though there were some reported inconsistencies on a more individual level.
“Initial results show no system issues,” Helfinstine cites, “There are outliers that are being analyzed individually with ongoing testing to confirm accuracy and recommend process improvements.”
While Kay states that the audit would only require 360 meters of the 92,000 occupying Gilbert homes to meet a 95% confidence rating for the study, the firm chose to pull and test 450 meters instead. The test parameters used for the audit are the current industry standard.
“We developed our audit approach using the American Waterworks Association's manual of water supply practices for water audits and loss control which outlines a process for performing water audits and gives case studies of similar size cities. The American Waterworks Association is the largest nonprofit scientific and educational organization dedicated to drinking water and water infrastructure,” Kay says.
In addition to the water meters themselves, 380 radios out of a total of 55,000 radios were removed and replaced for testing.
While the audit is ongoing and testing is still underway, Helfinstine is confident in an April deadline on final results.
“Again, the purpose of today was to provide a progress update, and to date, no systemwide issues have been identified”, she reiterates, “However, we are continuing to identify and review incoming data and test results. On April 7th, we will be back to prevent to present a summary of
the results and the final report will be posted to the project website for anyone to view at any time.”
The Kimley-Horn team then took to an information booth outside the council chambers to answer any questions residents may have.
Photo Credit: Teri Tracy
The audit was brought about thanks to residents who brought attention to their suddenly high utility bills, citing issues with the new water meters being installed to replace outdated equipment. Simultaneously, though, a new billing system was being implemented, creating a chaotic storm that confused and upset residents.
Vice Mayor Chuck Bongiovanni, who was a council member at the time of the interview, told OpGov.news in December of last year that he felt the town could have done a “much better job” implementing the new billing software the utilities department switched to.
The topic has been a heated one over many past council meetings.
OpGov.news will continue to follow this story and report on any updates as they become available.
To add to or correct any information in this report, please contact me at tracy.t@lead4earth.org and leave a comment below.
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