Council postpones rollout to gather more consumption data and finish installations
Cornwall city council voted Monday to delay the start of metered water and sewer billing from 2027 to 2028 so staff can finish installations and collect a full year of consumption data. The decision followed staff reports that a substantial number of homes have yet to receive meters and that work is needed on many curb stops before meters can be fitted.
Officials told council there are 650 meters still to be installed across the city. Of those, approximately 200 addresses require curb-stop replacements before a meter can be put in place, creating an unintended delay in the overall program. As a result, staff have only been able to gather consumption information from roughly one-third of water users.
Why the delay matters
City staff and elected officials stressed the delay is aimed at ensuring accuracy in the rate-setting process and avoiding implementation problems that could be difficult to reverse. With limited consumption data, early rate projections had to rely on average household consumption figures rather than measured, local usage patterns.
"It’s a pretty significant project, and better to take your time and do it properly because once it’s in place, it’s very tricky to kind of reconfigure it," Coun. Dean Hollingsworth said during the meeting. Staff said the extra time will also allow for more public education ahead of the system launch.
"We just haven’t been able to turn the water off due to issues related to curb stops," Fire Chief and deputy CAO Matthew Stevenson told council.
What residents will see
Until council approves metered rates and the system is switched on, Cornwall households will continue receiving flat-rate water and sewer bills. Staff said the delay will allow them to assemble a year’s worth of consumption data so rates can be based on measured local use and help keep the public onside when metering begins.
Coun. Claude McIntosh pressed staff — including interim director of financial services Sarah Huskinson — on how reliable the limited data is, noting that weather patterns such as above-average rainfall in 2026 could skew consumption figures.
- 650 meters remain uninstalled across Cornwall.
- About 200 homes need curb-stop replacements before meters can be fitted.
- Only one-third of water users currently have consumption data recorded.
- Metered billing start moved to 2028; flat-rate billing continues until then.
Numbers at a glance
| Item | Figure |
|---|---|
| Meters still to be installed | 650 |
| Homes needing curb-stop work | ~200 |
| Share of users with consumption data | One-third |
| New start date for metered billing | 2028 |
City staff told council they will provide a future report outlining estimated costs related to the extra installation and curb-stop work. Officials also said the extra time is needed to finalise the rate structure so it reflects actual consumption patterns rather than provisional averages.
For residents, the immediate effect is continuity: bills will remain flat-rate until the city has complete data and council signs off on the new rates. For council, the challenge is balancing a timely rollout with the reliability and fairness of the new system — a task made more complicated by incomplete installations and atypical weather patterns that can affect water use.
Council’s decision came during the Sept. 29 city meeting and reflects a cautious approach to a large-scale municipal change that will affect thousands of households across Cornwall.
