A single mom with three children appeared before the Plymouth Board of Public Works and Safety Monday evening to see if anything could be done with the extremely high water bill she received.
Dulce Ordonez rents an apartment on Thayer Street and received a city water bill totaling $541.96 when her typical bill runs about $76.00.
City Utility Superintendent Donnie Davidson said he has had a service man there two times and they didn’t locate any leaks or loss of water. Looking back at the address they found another tenant who complained about a high water bill in July 2017 and that time a leaking toilet was the cause.
Davidson said, “Having a landlord and tenant puts us in as awkward situation trying to determine who’s responsible. All we know is the water was used and went down the drain somewhere.” He continued saying it’s surprising how much water loss you can have with a running toilet or a water softner cycling too much.
Board member Jeff Houin asked to have the water meter tested just to make sure it is working properly and Davidson said they would continue to monitor the issue but the last couple of weeks her usage has been back to normal.
Ordonez asked if she could set up payment arrangements to pay the excessive bill. Clerk Treasurer Jeanine Xaver said typically they require payment of the current month’s bill and then set a dollar amount to be paid monthly on the back bill. She also noted that penalties can be waived. The Board of Works approved the request to make payments and waive any penalties
