20220516Metering Plan.pdf

TETON WATER & SEWER COMPAI\IY
PO Box 786, Driggs Idaho 83422
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Date: May L6,2O22
Commission Secretary
Teton Water and Sewer Company
Metering Plan
Reference Case No. TTS-W-08{1
Reference Order No. 30718
Background
ln January 2009, the Commission in the above Case and Order found that the, then, Teton Springs Water
and Sewer Company, should pursue metering and directed the Company to submit an implementation
plan and financing proposal. The intent, we believe, was to estimate the cost to retrofit all of the homes
and commercial buildings built in the early stages of the development with meters.
Further, in the Order, it is stated that "Staff recommends that the Company read and record all well
production flow and customer meters." lt then states, "We find that the number of meters that need to
be read to facilitate "Monitored Consumption" consists of only 10 meters, i.e. Quickwater Ranch, the
two production wells, the two multi-family units and the five commercial customers with 2-inch, 3-inch,
4-inch and 6-inch services."
Upon the rate case application filed in 2022, TTS-W-22-02, it was identified by both Commission staff
and the Company that the plan and financing proposal had not been completed. lt was also identified
that the Quickwater, multi-family and commercial should have been read.
For background, in 2012, the developer-owned Teton Springs Water and Sewer Company was sold to
the current owners and it was re-named Teton Water and Sewer Company, hereafter referred to as the
Company. As for the first portion of the order, at the time of the ownership transfer, there had been no
submittal of an implementation plan and financing proposal to the Commission.
Also,asofthechangeofownershipin2OL2,onlythetwoproductionwellswerebeingread. Atthetime
of purchase, the Quickwater Ranch, multi-family units and commercial customers were not being read.
The Ranch and multi-family units were metered, the commercial customers were not.
Therefore, this Metering Plan is being submitted at this time.
Actions to Date
Since the above referenced orders, all homes constructed were to have meters installed in them. A
meter installation program began in 2005 and meters were directed to be installed in the crawl spaces
of all of the homes that began construction during that year. The equipment purchased for reading in
2005 were of the Sensus SRll with ICE register "touchpad" variety (as opposed to radio read).
When the Company was purchased in 2012, meter installations changed to have all meters installed in
pits outside of the home.
In the original 2008 case, it was believed at that time that only about 50 homes (those built before the
metering program began)would require to be retrofit.
ln 2O2O, we planned to begin a "Meter Audit", essentially going into every developed home and
physically inspecting the meters to make sure they were present and functioning. Due to Covid, the
audit was pushed to 2O2L. Although the audit was not fully complete due to the inability to get into
many of the homes, what we found was alarming. Not only did the early homes not have meters (as
expected), but many of the homes that were supposed to have meters did not. Some, it appears never
had one installed, some had the meters removed and others it was difficult to tell. During the audit, for
estimation purposes, homes that were unable to be entered had the exterior of the home surveyed to
search for the "touchpad". lf a touchpad was present, it was estimated that a meter was present. lf no
touchpad was present, it was estimated that there is no meter.
Regardless, the approximately 50 homes we thought would need to be retrofit with meters grew
substantially, our estimation is over double. Until we complete a full audit, we will not know exactly
how many homes may need to have meters (and associated meter re-setters and backflow prevention)
We also don't know how many homes will have space to install the meter in the home vs. those where,
given space constraints, a meter pit would need to be installed in their yard. For example, on May 6th
2022,we entered a home that should have had a meter, it did not, and there is no space to install it in
the mechanical room. This will necessitate installing a meter pit in the owne/s front yard.
Also, as part of the audit, we identified that our original touchpad reading equipment was no longer
functional. Unfortunately, this equipment has been discontinued and is no longer supported by the
manufacturer. Therefore, all work going fonrvard will be with AMR.
To the overall question of meter reading, other than the 2 production wells (which are recorded daily),
reading has not taken place.
- The multi-family units are metered although must read manually, the commercial buildings are
not metered.- For the Quickwater Ranch, in the summer of 2021we did two readings and determined that we
needed to pursue a better method to read this meter throughout the year. This meter is located
in a pit on a hill in the woods and in inaccessible during the winter months.
Hardware lnstallation Plan
General Hardware lnstallation Plan for Future Construction
For new construction, the Company will continue to have meter pits with meters and AMR equipment
installed on all new construction.
Plan for Hardware lnstallation for Current Properties with Meter in Home
ln those homes identified during the audit as having a meter already installed in the home. Many of
these homes have a reading touchpad wired to the outside of the home. For those homes, we will wire
a Neptune R900 radio transmitter in place of the existing touchpad for AMR reading.
For those homes where a meter exists but is not wired to the exterior of the home, if possible, we will
run the wire to the exterior of the home and install the Neptune transmitter as above. lf it is not
possible to run the wire (missing or damaged or bad meter), we will replace the meter with a Neptune
Mach 10 equipped with the transmitter in the register of the meter.
Plan for Hardware lnstallation for Current Properties with Meter in Pit
In those homes identified during the audit as having a meter already installed in a pit, we will wire a
Neptune R900 radio transmitter antennae in place for AMR reading.
Plan for Hardware lnstallation for Current Commercial and Multi-Familv Buildinss
Teton Spring Lodge - this multi-family unit has a Sensus compound meter and is not capable of AMR
reading - Estimated cost to retrofit to Neptune AMR is 52,800
Palisades Condominium - this multi-family unit has a Sensus meter with touchpad - Estimated cost to
retrofit is 5148.
Golf Sports Club - this commercial building has 2" service and no meter - Estimated cost to retrofit,
including parts and labor is S1,266
Golf Cart Barn - this commercial building has 2" service and no meter - Estimated cost to retrofit,
including parts and labor is 52,766 (special re-setter required)
Golf Restaurant - this commercial building has 2" service and no meter - Estimated cost to retrofit,
including parts and labor is 5L,266
Real Estate Office - this commercial building has 2" service and no meter - Estimated cost to retrofit,
including parts and labor is S1,266
Plan for Hardware lnstallation for Quicltwater Ranch
The Quickwater Ranch has a 1 %" Neptune meter and we are told it is compatible with our plan. We will
add a repeater capable of producing a 4-20 mA signal and will hardwire this meter into the existing
SCADA RTU unit approximately 450'away. This will enable us to read this meter daily and year-round
from our SCADA system for the future.
Plan for Hardware lnstallation for Homes Built without Meter
We do not have a formal plan. A completed audit willtell us how many homes can have a meter
installed in the home vs. having to install a meter pit in the yard. Below we have offered a "guess" as to
what the cost might be based upon our partial audit of 2021.
Meter Reading Plan
Plan for Meter Readinr Except for Homes Built without Meter
On April 29,2022, the Company ordered 98 of the Neptune M900 Radio Transmitter units for the homes
that we know have meters with wiring installed to the exterior of the home. Also ordered were 42 of
the Neptune M900 Radio Antennae units for the homes that have meter pits. Also ordered were the
Neptune Meter Reading Equipment and Software. The cost of this based on luly 2O2L pricing would be
52O,74O plus tax. We assume the final price based on cost increases to be more.
It is unknown the cost to install the equipment. With 146 units to install, our "guess" at this time is that
we can do I LlZ units per hour. That would be 97 hours at approximately S45/hour for a total of
54,365. The actual hourly cost is unknown.
The equipment delivery ETA is 4-5 months. Once it arrives, we will begin installation of the meter
reading equipment and programming. Our hope is that we can have installation and programming
complete by the end of the year.
After installation, we can begin meter reading to gain statistical data for future planning and/or rate
cases.
Plan for Meter Reading Quickwater and Multi-Familv Units
Effective June ls, manual reading willtake place at these 3 locations on a monthly basis.
Cost & Fundins Proposals
Cost for Currentlv Metered Homes
The cost associated with currently metered homes and their conversion to an AMR system, with a
margin of error:
Total estimated cost - 530,000
This project is planned forcompletion during the2022 calendaryear, if equipment arrives, with funding
to come from current operating revenues andlor funds from new well loan or line of credit from lender
in the event of funding shortfall.
Cost for Quickwater Ranch
The estimated cost for the new 4-20 ma repeater is 52,300. The estimated cost for trenching labor and
conduit is 51,000. The estimated cost to connect to the SCADA RTU and programming is 51,500
including travel.
Total Estimated Cost - 54,800
This project is planned for completion during the 2022 calendar year with funding to come from current
operating revenues and/or funds from new well loan or line of credit from lender in the event of funding
shortfall.
Cost for Commercial and Multi-Familv Metering
See above for details, Total Estimated Cost - S9,5tz
Funding and timeline for implementation are unknown
Cost for Metering un-Metered Built Homes
Based on the 2021 audit and an optimistic assumption that we can put meters/re-setters/backflow in
every home, our best guess is that there are about 118 homes in this category and 3 where we know
meter pits will be required.- For meters in homes (pricing based on July 2021)
o 5374.00 per meter
o 5300.00 per meter setter/backflowo S 40.00 for 2 brass isolation valves
o SfOOO.Oo for plumber to install (8 hours at S125/hour)o For L2L homes - estimated total cost = 5207,394 (S1,714/home)
- For homes requiring meter pits
o 52,352 for meter, pit, foam, lid, brass fittings, poly line and AMR Antennae
o S gOO for excavation and installation
o S +OO for yard rehabilitation
o For 3 homes - estimated total cost = $10,956 (s3,652/home)
Total Estimated Cost - 5218,350
Funding and timeline for implementation for the commercial and residential unmetered buildings are
unknown at this time. We believe it is prudent to complete the new wellthat is currently under
construction and get it on-line and see how it improves our production capacity first. Also, we believe it
prudent to complete the currently metered homes and Quickwater Ranch. ln essence, expenditures
that are already planned need to be completed before we can create a multi-year budget or funding
plan for the Commercial and un-metered homes.