Residents of a Helena subdivision say their water utility is shutting off water service to their homes without sufficient notice. They’re asking state regulators to determine whether the utility unjustly interrupted service and whether they can do so in the future.
Residents at some of the roughly 280 households at North Star Subdivision say a private utility is keeping them in a constant state of suspense as to whether or not they’ll see a water shut-off at any given time. Utility managers meanwhile say they were trying to avoid system failure brought on by excessive water use due to residents watering their lawns.
At a Public Service Commission hearing Friday, resident Kate Barker said she’s lived at the subdivision for six years.
“Every year, my husband and I dread the summer because we worry about the water utility restricting our water and we never know what the utility is going to do and when we’ll be restricted and it’s not predictable at all," Barker said.
Residents say the utility gave them insufficient warning of an emergency water disruption at the end of August.
North Star Water & Sewer managers say they sent out notices and posted signs earlier in the month warning that a disruption may occur.
In a document dated to July, managers say a utility shut-off may be necessary to avoid system failure brought on by excessive water use.
North Star Water and Sewer co-manager Doug Peterson pointed to residents watering lawns as a stressor on the water system.
"If homeowners would follow the restrictions, there would’ve been no shutoff, there would have been no problem," Peterson said.
This is not the first time residents have fought with subdivision management over utilities.
After several rounds of intervention, the PSC in August rejected North Star’s request to steeply raise residents’ base charge for water and sewer. Developers said the increased rates were needed to pay for infrastructure installation. The Public Service Commission determined that the developer in this case may not earn the return of that investment through rates.
The hearing is one step in an ongoing case before the Public Service Commission. A PSC attorney says he expects a November decision on whether the utility broke or followed state code by discontinuing service.
