(A) Each residential dwelling unit and business shall have a separate water meter except where an extreme existing hardship exists that would not allow or permit the existing plumbing to be separated into individual plumbing systems. The town shall determine whether each combined service is an existing hardship case and will be exempted. The property owner installing a separate service line to the street right-of-way or utility easement does not constitute an existing hardship.
(B) Property owners shall be responsible for the individual billings for service to dwelling units and/or businesses that are served by 1 meter until multiple hookups are eliminated. This shall apply to all residential, commercial, and industrial connected onto the town's utility mains.
(C) Two or more residential and/or businesses may use the same sewer service if it is properly sized to meet the N.C. Plumbing Code.
(D) All residents and businesses within the town limits of the Town of Kenly shall be connected onto the town's water and sewer systems.
(E) No residential or business facility shall connect his or her potable water and plumbing to a water source other than the town's. Irrigation systems may be connected onto an approved well but a separate plumbing system shall be constructed as to not interconnect or cross-connect the irrigation system to the line containing water from the Town of Kenly. Water from sources other than the Town of Kenly shall not be discharged into the town's sewer system. All systems that contain non-town furnished water shall be inspected by the Town of Kenly at least twice a year.
(F) Residential and business customers that receive their drinking water from a source other than from the Town of Kenly and were connected onto their sources of water prior to 10-10-1988 may remain connected under all of the following conditions.
(1) The property owner shall provide a water analysis of their water system (including bacteria analysis) at least twice a year.
(2) The property owner shall have a double check valve/backflow preventer device installed by a licensed plumber within 5 feet of the town’s meter box on the property owner's side of the meter box.
(3) Once a property owner's other source for drinking water goes dry or becomes contaminated, the property owner shall immediately connect onto the town's water system.
(4) Once a property owner's septic tank system fails to properly handle the wastewater, the property owner shall immediately connect onto the town's wastewater system.
(G) Any residential or business customer that received his or her water from a source other than the town shall pay for a minimal quantity of 3,000 gallons for water and for sewer. If the customer or the town desires, a meter will be installed on the other water source to determine the actual usage. The customer shall pay for the installation of the meter and the town shall furnish and read the meter.
(H) A customer may have 1 water and sewer billing amount adjusted per every 12-month period for a billing amount that is not in line for that particular customer. If a customer has a high bill because of a leak on the customer’s side of the meter and the customer provides the town with a statement from a plumber that the leak was repaired and the water was not returned to the town’s wastewater system, the customer's sewer portion of the bill shall be adjusted by averaging the past 6 months’ bills. The customer shall remain responsible for the water that went through his or her meter. In the event the leak is carried over multiple months, the customer has the option of choosing which month is to be adjusted. For example, if a leak starts on July 8 but is not fixed until July 25, the customer has the option of having an adjustment on the August or September bill. The rationale for this is that meters are read on the 15th so the usage for the August bill would be July 8-July 15, while the usage for the September bill would be July 16-August 15.
(I) The town shall maintain and service the water meter for each customer. If a customer believes that the town has a nonworking or incorrectly working meter, the customer has the right to request the town to check the meter and change the meter if it is not properly operating.
(J) If a customer requests the town to check his or her meter more than 1 time per month and no problem is found with the meter, the customer shall pay a service charge of $10 for each time over the 1 time per month the customer requests service to the meter and no problem is found with the meter. This fee shall be a part of the regular monthly billing.
(K) When a user's bill is not paid on or before the tenth of the month after the month it was read, the user shall pay a 10% penalty for all services provided by the town as shown on the monthly billing. If a user does not pay his or her bill by the twentieth of the month after the month it was read, the town shall prepare a list of users that have not paid their bill. The town shall cut off each user's water whose name appears on the list. All users that do not pay their bill on or before the twentieth shall pay a fee as set forth in the town's fee schedule. If the service is cut off by the town and the water is cut on prior to paying the town for the past due bill, the user shall pay an additional meter tampering fee of as set forth in the town's fee schedule. Once a user's water is cut off, the entire bill must be paid by the user to have the water cut back on. All past due customers shall have until 1-20-1989 to get their accounts made current on outstanding bills for service prior to 12-1-1988.
(L) Each and every residential customer within the town limits shall pay for garbage service provided by the Town of Kenly except residential complexes that provide container service to their tenants.
(M) A residential customer must be away from his or her primary residence at least 60 days before the monthly service fee will be waived.
(N) This amendment shall become effective with the January, 1989, bills.
(Ord. passed 11-14-1988; Am. Ord. 19-08, passed 11-12-2019) Penalty, see § 51.99