§ 38-65. Meters; fire hydrants; prohibited activities; penalties

(a) Connection and repair of service. The city shall install and maintain all service connections from water mains to and including the water meter and back flow prevention devices, with the exception of testable assemblies. All other maintenance and repairs shall be the responsibility of the customer.

(b) Repairing or testing meters and meter boxes; fee. All water meters and meter boxes furnished by the city shall remain at all times the property of the city, and when rendered unserviceable through normal wear and tear, the city shall repair or replace the meter. When replacements, repairs or adjustments of any meter or meter box are required because of the act, neglect, or carelessness of the owner or occupant of any premises, any expense caused to the city thereby shall be charged against and collected from the owner, agent or tenant of the premises, and if not paid, service shall be disconnected.

(c) Taps and repairs. Unless otherwise provided by a utility improvement agreement, it shall be unlawful for any person, other than a person employed by the city or with whom the city has contracted, to tap any utility facility, make connection with the utility facility, extend a service line from any utility facility, install a meter, or repair a utility service line from the city's utility facility to the meter, on the city's side of the meter.

(d) Tampering. It shall be unlawful for any person other than those authorized by the city to connect, disconnect, move or tamper with city water meters or to turn on or off the water at the curbstop, valve or meter; or to open or tamper with the meter box.

(e) Use of fire hydrants. It shall be unlawful for any person, except a member of the fire department or employee of the city or a person so authorized by the city, to open or use water from a fire hydrant or to take the cap off without permission from the city, except for the use of construction water with the proper construction meter attached to the fire hydrant.

(f) Interference with water service. It shall be unlawful for any persons to willfully break, injure, tamper, or interfere with any part of the city's utility system for any purpose whatsoever, or in any way prevent the running and operation of such systems and the water supply. It shall be unlawful for any persons to willfully break, injure, tamper, or interfere with a customer's meter or service line, or otherwise interfere with the city's provision of utility service to the customer.

(g) Opening curbstop. No plumber or any other person shall open the street curbstop after same has been closed by the city without a written permit first being obtained from the city.

(h) Exposing to damage or moving of meter or fire hydrant. It shall be unlawful to build or construct driveways or other roads or improvements in such manner as to expose any meter or fire hydrant to damage from traffic. Whenever the property owner requests the moving of any meter or fire hydrant, such cost shall be at the expense of the property owner. Upon deposit of an estimated cost of moving the meter or fire hydrant, the city shall proceed to make the desired change in location, after the approval of the building inspector and the city.

(i) Vending water. It shall be unlawful for any person to sell or resell city water for domestic or any other uses within or outside the city without receiving a permit to do so from the city. Before the granting of such permit, the city shall submit such application to the city council and the city inspector for their written recommendations after investigation.

(j) Access to meters. The customer shall provide safe and clear access to the meter at all reasonable times for the purpose of reading, installing, checking, repairing, or placing the meter. The customer shall provide a key to locked gates. If the gate to the customer's premises is locked, preventing the reading of the meter, an estimated bill shall be rendered to the customer for the month; and a notice shall be sent to the effect that entrance could not be gained and that a key should be furnished or the gate unlocked for each reading period. The city may remove the meter if there is an unsafe or hazardous condition that threatens the safety of the city's employees.

(k) Any person found to be violating this chapter is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, is subject to a fine as provided by section 1-10 of this Code.

(Ord. No. 592, art. IV, § 8, 10-23-2012; Ord. No. 619, § II(M), 9-10-2013)