Grand Marais Public Utilities Commission (PUC) Secretary Jan Smith told the PUC board on June 3 that she had discovered an overcharge on a customer’s bill that began November 2008.
“The mistake was a $10 charge per month which resulted in a total overbilling of $716.04,” Smith said.
“At [City Administrator] Mike Roth’s request, I reviewed every bill printed for May and found one other such mistake going back to October 2013 for an overbilling of $75.52. I recommend sending a refund check to the first customer and a credit on the utility bill for the other customer. Both customers are now aware of the mistake,” Smith said.
The owner of Hughie’s Taco House, Anna Hamilton, notified the PUC by letter that she had found a small pinhole leak in her hot water line under the floor. She said she and her sister, Sarah removed much of the floor to find the leak.
“Judging by the amount of water and soaked wood I would assume this has been leaking for a few months,” wrote Hamilton. “I am wondering if the city would consider crediting Hughie’s sewer charges from March to May?”
Smith said that she had discussed Hamilton’s request with Tom Nelson, superintendent of the water/ sewer department, and he agreed that Hamilton should be credited $78.76 for 8,800 gallons of water.
Mike Taylor, head of the city’s electrical department, said the department’s muchused bucket truck needed a lot of repairs, and it might be time to start looking at buying a new one.
The current truck is just over 10 years old. Originally the plan was to keep it for 15 years, but due to wear and tear it looks like now would be a good time to trade it in and purchase a new truck.
“How much will a new one cost?” asked PUC Board member Karl Hansen.
“It might be $100,000 for a new one. Maybe $120,000,” Taylor said.
“If we can get a decent amount of money for it we should replace it. This is one thing that we use a lot, and we need it to be in good working order,” said Roth.
No action was taken at this time on the matter, but Taylor said, “I am only telling you this now so you don’t have a heart attack when I come back sometime in the near future and tell you I am going to need to buy a new truck.”
Taylor said his crew recently ran power lines to three new homes built on Lake Superior. He also said the 3-phase power was installed at the new micro-brewery building located in the former Almost Home building, but it wasn’t activated yet.
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