Category Archives: Water Utility

by | February 12, 2014 · 4:40 pm

Water Utility Alert: Run Your Faucets To Avoid Freezing Pipes

Update: The post now includes the official text used for the citywide phone alert.

An alert from the South Milwaukee Water Utility …

Due to the unusual depth of frost this year, Water Utility customers are being asked to run their water full flow from a cold water faucet for five minutes, five times per day, until March 1st. This request is to prevent water pipes from freezing. 

Residents leaving for an extended period should make sure that their basement is warm and have someone come to your house regularly to run the cold water to make sure your lateral doesn’t freeze.

To prevent your water main from freezing, you may notice a hydrant running in your neighborhood. 

From South Milwaukee Water Utility (414) 768-8070.
See http://www.smwi.org

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by | February 10, 2014 · 9:29 pm

South Milwaukee High School Holding Classes On Tuesday Following Water Main Break

Update: Here is video from WISN, which includes an interview with the high school principal and South Milwaukee water superintendent. We’ve already seen around 25 main breaks across the city this year.

South Milwaukee High School will hold classes as normal on Tuesday after shutting down early on Monday due to a water main break.

That’s according to the district’s Twitter feed.

Water service was restored to the school Monday evening after the district installed a valve isolating the broken main from the rest of the system, according to the South Milwaukee Fire Department, which also reports that the school will be without one nearby fire hydrant for the time being. Alternate water options for fire suppression have been identified and will be used, if necessary. 

I’ll keep you posted.

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by | February 10, 2014 · 3:58 pm

Evening Activities Go On Despite Main Break — Without Water

That’s the message from South Milwaukee High School officials, following today’s water main break that forced the early closure of the school.

From the activities and athletics website …

All Recreation & High School after school activities will be held tonight as planned. Due to the water main break no restrooms will be available for use in the High School this evening. Please bring your own water to drink and plan ahead for no restrooms to be available in the High School.

Here are the exceptions: Power Lifting practice and JV Girls Basketball practice was cancelled. High School Wrestling practice was already held today. 

 

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by | February 10, 2014 · 11:04 am

Water Main Break Sends South Milwaukee High School Students Home

Update: Check out coverage from Fox 6 and WISN. And from the South Milwaukee Schools Twitter page: “The high school will not have to make up the lost time for today as we are still within the required number of minutes.”

The break happened this morning.

The district website has a notice posted. It says the high school closed at 9:45 a.m. The middle school remains open.

WTMJ has more.

I’ll keep you posted.

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by | January 13, 2014 · 9:15 pm

On Water Main Breaks

WISN was in South Milwaukee last week to talk weather and water mains (and water main breaks).

Check out the story here. From it:

The weather is also bursting water mains.

“The ground shifts, and it actually makes the thing (a break), just like a broken bone,” South Milwaukee Water Superintendent Doug Fischer said.

There were two water main breaks in South Milwaukee on Wednesday and just as with the potholes, the warmup will likely make things worse.

Work crews said the real problems begin when temperatures fluctuate a great deal, which is what is happening. The week began with temperatures in the deep freeze. By the weekend though, they may soar well up above the freezing mark, and next week, those overnight lows, well, they could be back in the freezer again.

“Yeah, that’s the worst thing. We like steady temperatures. If we could just get a steady 25 through the rest of the winter, we’d be good,” Fischer said. 

If you suspect a water main break, please call the South Milwaukee Water Utility at 768-8070.

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by | December 15, 2013 · 5:19 pm

Automated Water Meters On The Way

Automated water meters are being installed across the city.

The project began this spring and will continue for the next several years.

Learn more on the city website. From it:

The Utility plans to replace or retrofit all of its water meters with automated meters.  This will increase meter reading efficiency in addition to providing meaningful real time data for customers.  South Milwaukee Water Utility will be able to remotely read all of our customers from one location without physically having to read your meter on site.  The Utility will have the ability to catch a customer’s leak in a timely manner, instead of waiting until the next meter reading, helping conserve water and save customers from a potential high bill.

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by | December 7, 2010 · 12:31 am

Large Water Main Break Reported in Downtown South Milwaukee

Update: See below for more details.

If you noticed your water pressure drop around 1 p.m. on Monday, you were not alone.

A large water main broke around 10th and Michigan Avenue, the Water Utility reported. And while this wasn’t nearly as bad as what happened in February — when a large water main break left the city without drinking water for a day — this one apparently impacted a number of businesses and residents.

As of late Wednesday afternoon, the utility was still working to repair the main, and there was still low pressure for a few customers, the city reported.

Were you affected by the main break? Let me know how. Post your comments below.

I’ll keep you posted when I learn more about this.

UPDATE

Here is information I got from Doug Fischer, our water utility superintendent, on Tuesday.

A 12’ main on 10th and Michigan broke around 12:30 pm causing low pressure throughout the city. Our crew responded immediately to isolate the break. They were able to get the water shut off at approximately an hour later. The only customer that was without water during the repair was Nona’s.

After digging we found that the pipe had pretty much blew apart. A big section of the pipe had broken off causing extensive road damage. The crew also had to repair an old valve that was hit while digging that we believe was for an abandoned fire hydrant. The repairs were completed and water back on around 11:30 pm. We had to wait to back fill until today because the Wastewater Department wanted to send a camera into the sewer that is below the water main to make sure it wasn’t damaged. We also could not get slurry for back fill until after 11:00 am today.

The road will be opened up for traffic after The Street Department has the holes patched with asphalt.

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by | September 28, 2010 · 11:00 pm

Public Service Commission Approves 56% Water Rate Increase

Expect a big increase in the size of your next water bill.

The Wisconsin Public Service Commission has approved the South Milwaukee Water Utility’s requested rate increase, meaning the average property owner’s bill will go up 56 percent effective Oct. 1.

November bills will reflect the increase for one month.

Click here to see the full PSC decision. From it:

The Commission appreciates and is sensitive to the customers’ concerns in this matter. However, the Commission finds that the revenue resulting from the authorized rates is necessary to provide for the financial needs of the utility over the long-term. …

These rates are reasonable and just. All customers will be required to pay an appropriate amount for the service provided.

Just how much will you pay? Obviously, it depends on usage, but average residential customers will pay $97.75 every four months with the increase, up from $62.82 currently (or the aforementioned 56 percent).

Increases for larger commercial, industrial and public users will run in the mid-60 percent range.

Check out a complete rate chart in Appendix D of the PSC decision.

While the increase is unfortunate — I have said before that I wish the pain of such a large increase could have been spread over a series of years vs. levied all at once — I was happy to see that residents made their voices known in the debate. According the PSC, 17 individuals submitted written comments to the commission, and 39 water customers appeared at the public hearing earlier this month.

“Most expressed concern with the level of rate increase in this bad economic environment,” according to the decision.

I share that same concern … while at the same time accepting the increase as necessary given the recent $9.4 million in plant upgrades, declining industrial and residential usage and other factors. I don’t love it. But I will live with it.

What do you think? Post your comments below … and cast your vote in my new poll on the right-hand side of this page.

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by | September 6, 2010 · 10:49 pm

Reminder: Water Rate Increase Hearing on Thursday

The Public Service Commission hearing on the South Milwaukee Water Utility’s proposed 55 percent increase will be held at 10 a.m. Thursday at the South Milwaukee Library.

For those who can not make the hearing in person, you can submit comments in writing to the PSC. Do so here.

Learn more in my previous post on this topic.

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