Priority Based Budgeting

So... I know the second posting is tardy.  My genuine apologies.  With such a recent focus on gathering citizen input for our new approach to budgeting (have you filled out your exercise?), as well as the search for a new town manager, it has been difficult to do due diligence with a detailed look at the Finance/Treasurer's Office.  Still, it is not an excuse and I expect to be back on track near the end of April.  I hope you can bear with me until then, as there are plenty more town departments to examine. 

In the meantime, please take a look at new information on priority based budgeting that includes where the town currently is in this process.  Enjoy -- and I promise to be back soon!

The Water Department, a division of Public Works

If your home is hooked up to a public water supply, every time you turn the faucet handle, flush the commode, or run the bath, the immediate response of clean, safe water is always expected.  Few people rarely give it a second thought… at least until there is some type of problem.  But how, exactly, does the water get there – and get there safely?   And what does it take to ensure the service stays there?  While every water provider is going to answer these questions slightly differently, I set out to find Christiansburg’s answers and examine the tremendous effort that goes into this process.

Straight from the Source

The Rime of the Ancient Mariner famously laments, “Water, water, everywhere, nor any drop to drink.”

Rest assured you will not be facing this problem anytime soon if you are connected to the town’s water service.  And that comfort is thanks to our clean, plentiful water source, also known as the New River.

As over 2.5 billion gallons flow along the river on an average day, about seven million gallons are pumped out, treated, and supplied to customers in Christiansburg, Blacksburg, portions of Montgomery County and at Virginia Tech on a daily basis.  While this may seem like a drop in the bucket compared to the daily flow rate of the river, it really is a substantial amount of water.   

Before it can get to your kitchen faucet, though, the water has to first get to the Water Treatment Plant located on Peppers Ferry Rd.  To do this, 12 giant pumps (150 or 400 hp each) intake water from the New River and raise it 365 feet while carrying it over two miles across land to the treatment plant.   

The electric bill for this process runs over $60,000 per month. 

While the official terminology for water treatment includes coagulation, flocculation, sedimentation, and filtration, the process basically works like this:

As soon as the raw, untreated water reaches the plant, chemicals are added in the first two steps of the treatment process (coagulation).  The quality of the raw water determines how it is treated (think: the dirtier the water – or the higher the turbidity – the more it needs cleaning).  So after a heavy rain with lots of soil runoff, the water brought to the facility has to be treated a little more than usual before it can be sent to consumers. 

The impurities in the water slowly settle to the bottom of holding tanks (flocculation and sedimentation) and the water then makes its way to a large, multi-layered filtering system, where it drains through (filtration) and on to the pipes that leave the facility and carry the water to its customers. 

The mud separated from the water during latter stages of the treatment process is so clean you could actually eat it.  The Environmental Protection Agency feels differently, however, and considers the sediment to be industrial waste.  Thus, instead of making soothing masks or sediment-rich fertilizer, the mud has to be dried into cakes and buried at the solid waste facility in Dublin.     

The exact amount of water pulled from the river on a given day simply depends on demand.  Employees at the treatment plant track the demand by monitoring the levels in the water tanks around the area and refill them completely every night. 

These monitors also provide unique insight into the daily lives of people.  Long-term trends show the water pumps need to be cranked up around 5:00AM every morning (especially on weekdays) to prepare for a large spike in usage beginning around 6:00AM.  Water usage then drops off mid-morning before spiking slightly around lunchtime.  Demand then drops off again in the afternoon before significantly spiking around 5:00PM and continuing with heavy usage until bedtime.   It is interesting to realize it takes people in a water plant miles away from town monitoring the predictable completion of daily routines and planning ahead to ensure everyone has ample water on demand.       

Getting the Water to Town

Once water leaves the water treatment plant, it is transported via distribution pipes to several water tanks located throughout the area.  The tanks provide the needed water pressure for the system and are assisted by pump stations because water needs to travel uphill or for long distances on its way to its final destination.  

After leaving a tank, water is carried via gravity to distribution mains that branch into service lines that connect to each home or business.  The size of each line varies depending on the level of service it needs to provide.   The largest lines in the town’s water system are 24” in diameter, while the lines servicing homes are typically ¾”.  Of course, the larger the pipe the greater the flow available so fire hydrants are typically connected to large main lines in order to provide the highest level of fire flow protection possible.

Monitoring the pump stations is also a vital aspect of system maintenance.  To ensure each pump station remains in top working order, each one is visually inspected every single day of the year.  Even on holidays.  Making the route around town to each station takes one inspector about three hours each day.  While this seems time consuming, it allows the town to keep an eye out for any issues that might not immediately be visible via a camera or gauge so they can be addressed before impacting customers’ water service.      

Accurate Billing

You may have heard the question or even asked it yourself, “Does the town really need two people to read one meter?” 

Yes, actually, they do. 

The town bills on a bi-monthly basis, meaning every two months the town has a window of just 10 days – regardless of weather – to collect readings from 9800 meters.  300 meters are conveniently read through a wireless system but the other 9500 must be individually read and the data manually entered into a handheld unit. 

Over the years, the town has developed an effective way to tackle this large job and ensure accurate bills are sent out in a timely manner.  This involves deploying two, two-person teams with handheld devices containing all the water meter serial numbers.  While one member of the team drives a truck, the other walks and finds each individual meter cover.  After removing the cover and completing a visual inspection of the meter’s condition, the reader calls out the meter number to the driver to double check they have the correct account.  The new usage reading is then called out and the driver enters it into the handheld device.  Having two sets of eyes and ears on the information keeps the process running smoothly and quickly.

Once the new readings are downloaded, they are compared with previous readings.  If a reading seems oddly high or low it is rechecked before utility bills are sent out.   

The refinement of this process has also paid off in other ways; the meter reading crews’ accuracy rating stands at 99.7%.  This level of quality is particularly important, considering $927,000 in revenue is generated each reading cycle.   

It is also important to note that the town’s focus on prioritizing resources will impact how meter reading is completed in winter months when there is snow on the ground.  Previously, the town utilized up to 14 additional employees from public works to help locate and access the snow-covered meters so they could be manually read year-round.  Readings during snow events will now be estimated based on past usage, with bill adjustments made accordingly once the snow melts and meters can again be manually read.  This will allow public works crews to continue to complete other projects throughout town to help keep them on schedule.  

Eventually, the town hopes to switch to an entirely wireless meter reading system that will deliver an even greater level of accuracy and eliminate winter weather difficulties.  

Responding to Problems, Maintenance, and New Construction

With 150 miles of water pipes and eight water tanks to maintain, it’s no wonder that sixteen public works employees are devoted to making repairs to pipes, new installations for service, and new construction for town projects for both the water and sewer system (Note: the waste water system will be covered in a different blog later in the series).  These employees are divided into four crews that work on an after-hours rotation to make sure any sudden problems can be addressed quickly, regardless of the day or time.  While crews also assist with snow removal efforts and other public works tasks as the need arises, their main task is to respond to any water or sewer issue that may arise. 

The demands of maintaining the water and sewer system are exceedingly high and these workers see the extremes in everything.  Their jobs tend to leave them either standing in water or raw sewage and the weather can be fierce on either end of the spectrum.  While fixing a water main break on a hot summer day doesn’t sound half bad, you might imagine that a similar break in the middle of winter is a whole different ballgame.  And it is during the middle of winter that you will most often find a repair crew hard at work, as frequent freezing and thawing of the ground can contribute to water main breaks.     

I visited just such a job site in December, where an 8” main line broke along Radford St.  It was 16 degrees outside with a wind chill I do not care to recall.  By the time I arrived, traffic cones had been set out and workers were scouring the area trying to pinpoint a shut-off valve in the snow to reduce the pressure in the line.  Another worker was using a saw to cut through asphalt so they would be able to better access the break.  Significant amounts of icy cold water bubbled out of the line break and cascaded down the hill into a drainage ditch.  After a representative from the gas company showed up to sign off on the work location, a backhoe was maneuvered into place and began tearing out the cut asphalt and hard-packed soil beneath. 

Now, I felt well-dressed for the weather but after standing outside for just a few minutes I began to lose feeling in my toes.  The guys at the site good-naturedly told me that I could get in one of the trucks to stay warm but I was determined to stay outside as long as they were working.  They generously bundled me up in extra coveralls and winter coats to help cut the wind.

It was then that the ‘fun’ work could begin.  As I still shivered away on dry ground, a member of the crew climbed directly into the path of the frigid water to try to reach a valve that would lower the pressure on the line.  He was drenched but didn’t complain for a second.    

And to be honest, that’s what truly impressed me the most about watching the repairs to the water break.  These guys are committed to their jobs and complete them with enthusiasm.  They weren’t personally impacted by the water main break, yet they knew other people were and they were determined to fix the problem because they enjoy providing a high level of service to the community.

While I’m on the topic of water main breaks, though, I must address a somewhat common complaint heard in many towns and cities that workers are just “standing around” on the job as water gushes out.  I asked a foreman about this specifically and there’s actually a sound explanation that addresses this perception.    

When a call comes in about a water main break, a crew is immediately dispatched to begin assessing the situation.   In addition to identifying the size of pipe and potential equipment needed to make the repair, crews also begin back feeding or diverting lines to keep as many people supplied with water as possible.  As long as there is no immediate risk to life or property (e.g. buildings), water is also typically left running to as many connections as possible to help keep the lines clean, prevent boil notices, etc. 

Even after equipment arrives on the scene and the work area is set up, however, crews cannot begin digging.

Why, you ask?

Digging is not immediately allowed for the same reason residents are always encouraged to call Miss Utility before breaking ground on their own projects.  That’s right; the local government also has to call other utility companies that potentially have gas lines, fiber optic cable, or other infrastructure in the area before they can dig.  In an emergency situation such as this, utility companies have a three hour window to arrive on the scene to mark the ground.  While they try to respond as quickly as possible, it does often leave a bit of lag time between notice of a break and the commencement of repair work, thus giving the perception of “standing around.”  You may have noticed this specific process in my earlier description of the water main break on Radford St.; crews were able to prepare the site at ground level but it wasn’t until the gas company signed off on the work that any actual digging could begin.

Going back to the meter reading crew, it is safe to say the majority of their work is devoted to completing tasks other than their job titles might suggest since they only spend about 60 days throughout the year actually reading meters.  The bulk of this work involves responding to approximately 15-20 service orders per day.  These orders include citizen-generated requests that their water service be turned on or off, checks for leaks or pressure levels, investigating frozen water, discolored water, or a variety of other issues.  The crews also install meter boxes for new construction projects.  Maintenance needs that are noted during meter reading are also followed up on, including working on stopped meters and cleaning out or fixing broken meter boxes. 

The meter reading department also has the unfortunate task of shutting off between 250-350 water connections every other month for non-payment.   As you might imagine, the people facing water shut-off are not always in the best of moods and meter readers are always doubled up with other public works employees as a safety precaution.  While one person places a notice of water shut-off on the front door, another person completes the shut-off at the meter.   Shut offs are completed by noon in a single day, then crews spend that afternoon restoring water service for customers who immediately make a payment.

While sympathetic to the genuine hardships faced by some community members, these shut-off crews are doing their job to ensure the very small minority of delinquent customers pay for their water service.  Yet crew members are sometimes subjected to threats, yelling, cursing, and other unpleasant behavior on shut-off day.  Unfortunately, a few people even go to such extreme measures to try to block their water from being turned off that the police department is forced to get involved.  

Meter Reader Foreman Leon Martin tells me that by the time all the meter-related tasks are addressed it is time to read meters again.  Thus, the cycle never ends.   

Ensuring Safety

Of course none of this work would really matter if the drinking water provided to customers wasn’t safe and dependable.  The Blacksburg-Christiansburg-VPI Water Authority and the Town of Christiansburg are extremely proud of their track record in water quality excellence.  In achieving and maintaining this record, the water at the treatment plant and in town is tested above and beyond federal and state requirements.  To ensure the best quality possible water samples are collected and tested over 270 times a day, every day of the year.  By the end of the year, over 98,500 tests have been completed. 

This commitment to following proper protocols and dedicated testing results in exceptional water quality year after year.  Both the water authority and town will continue to strive for excellence in water quality and customers should feel confident in the safety of every glass of water they consume.          

A Complete System

Walking through the water treatment plant, visiting the pump stations, and talking to those who care for the web of water lines and meters across our town was like stepping into the midst of a well-oiled machine.  The process works nearly seamlessly and with a surprisingly small number of workers, yet the extent of the work they accomplish is staggering.  Every pipe; every holding tank; every chemical; every meter; every little detail that goes into successfully drawing water from the New River, treating it to ensure safety, then getting it to thousands of homes and businesses to be ready on demand  takes significant maintenance and an unending commitment to exacting standards. 

And for all this work, water is delivered to your home for $1.33 per 100 gallons.  Keep in mind that’s about the price you pay for a 20 oz. bottle of water at the convenience store.  Not a bad deal by anyone’s standards.     



A crew member saws into the asphalt on Radford St. so a water line break can be accessed. 






The frozen ground was no match for the town's crew and their equipment.



The quick formation of ice crystals on the water line valve cap confirmed what we already knew: It was cold!! 

What’s up next month: Finance & the Treasurer’s Office, with a special focus on the town’s new priority based budgeting process