[Adopted 2-8-1971 as Ch. 52 of the 1971 Code]
A.
It shall be unlawful for any property owner to obtain water for any
purpose from any source other than water supplied by the Village of
Suffern Water Department, hereinafter called the "Water Department."
It is forbidden for any property owner to dig any wells within the
Village for any purpose except where written application is made to
the Suffern Board of Trustees and permission for such well is given
by said Board of Trustees.
B.
All applications for the introduction of water into any premises
or for the extension of any pipes for the conveyance of such water
must be made by the owner or authorized agent of the owner of the
premises in writing upon forms furnished by the Water Department.
Every applicant must agree to abide by the rules and regulations covering
water usage.
A.
All water except such water as is used for municipal purposes must
be metered.
B.
Meters shall be supplied by the Water Department and paid for by
property owners.
C.
All meters on or before the first day of October 1992 must be equipped
with a meter interface unit to enable the meter to be read by automatic
(remote) meter reading equipment. Such equipment will be installed
at Village Water Department expense if access is provided for such
installations on or before the 30th day of September 1992.
[Added 7-20-1992 by L.L. No. 4-1992]
D.
A surcharge of $25 per dwelling unit will be charged for each meter
reading if the owner or person in charge of property has failed, neglected
or refused to allow the installation of approved automatic (remote)
meter reading equipment and the existing meter must be manually read
by Village personnel. In the event that a scheduled reading is canceled
or Village personnel cannot obtain access to read a meter, an additional
surcharge of $25 will be charged for each such subsequent reading.
[Added 2-8-1993 by L.L. No. 1-1993]
E.
Notification of telephone number changes; manual reading service
charge.
[Added 6-21-1999 by L.L. No. 5-1999]
(1)
All water meters being read by use of a telephone circuit must have
the current telephone number for that circuit on file with the Water
Department. When a telephone number used for accessing a water meter
is changed, the Water Department must be notified of the new phone
number within 10 days.
(2)
If a telephone number for a circuit accessing a water meter is changed
and the Water Department is not notified of the new number within
10 days, a manual reading service charge of $25 will be levied against
the owner of the building for each living unit served by that water
meter on the occasion of each manual reading, not to exceed $100 per
occurrence.
A.
Ground clamps may not be attached to the service pipe closer than
two feet to the house and on the street side of the meter.
B.
All service lines from the main line to the curbline shall be installed
by the Water Department up to a maximum of one inch, which installation
shall be paid in advance by the property owner at the rate as set
by resolution of the Board of Trustees in the Standard Schedule of
Fees of the Village of Suffern, for each line, in addition to the
price of any meter.[1]
[Amended 3-12-1990 by L.L. No. 3-1990]
C.
All service lines from the main line to the curb in excess of one
inch shall be installed and paid for by the property owner after application
to the Water Department and the acquisition of a street opening permit
from the Village. All work for the installation of such service lines
shall be performed by a contractor possessing a current plumbing license
issued by the County of Rockland.
[Amended 7-11-2011 by L.L. No. 11-2011; 6-10-2013 by L.L. No.
6-2013]
D.
All service lines from the curb to the building shall be installed
and paid for by the property owner.
E.
All service lines on state roads and federal roads shall be installed
and paid for by the property owner after application to the Water
Department and the acquisition of a road-opening permit from the appropriate
state or federal agency. Installation from the main to the meter and
proper tests before filling in the ditch shall be made under the supervision
of Department of Public Works or Water Department.
F.
When a water meter is enclosed or boxed in or installed in underground
pits by the property owners, there must be an opening or access to
such pit of not less than three square feet in order to permit the
Water Department to make readings or repairs. All meters installed
in underground pits must have the location approval of the Department
of Public Works and must be maintained in waterproof condition.
G.
No certificate of occupancy shall be issued for any building except
the Municipal Buildings, unless said building has had a water meter
installed in accordance with this chapter.
Each residence or building shall have its separate service connection
direct to the main.
No branch will be allowed to be inserted in any service pipe
without a written permit from the Water Department. Where branches
already exist not provided with stopcocks, in case of default in payment
of water rent by anyone, the main service may be cut off until the
back charges are paid, and the Department shall not be liable for
damages from any other consumer who may thus be deprived of water.
Service pipes must be laid at least four feet below the surface
of the ground. If at any time it shall become necessary for the Water
Department to change the grade of their mains, the property owner
or water user shall lower the grade of the service pipe and fixtures
to conform to such change.
Employees of the Water Department may enter and must be permitted
entrance to any premises where a meter is being supplied, or upon
any premises for which application is made for service, for the purpose
of inspecting all pipes and connections with such water service. Water
may be shut off by the Water Department from any service or main for
the purpose of constructing new work, additions or making repairs
to the water system. Whenever possible, due notice will be given,
but in case of emergency, the water may be shut off without notice,
and the Village or the Water Department shall not be responsible for
any damage resulting therefrom.
No street openings will be made or permitted between November
1 and April 1 for the purpose of laying new waterlines, except in
the case of emergency repairs.
[Amended 7-18-1977 by L.L. No. 5-1977]
No water service shall be supplied to any user outside the corporate
limits of the Village of Suffern except by permission of the Board
of Trustees. The Board of Trustees shall not sell nor permit the use
of water pursuant to this section if thereby the supply for the Village
or its inhabitants will not be sufficient. If the Board of Trustees
permits connection with the mains of the Village for the purpose of
drawing water therefrom, it shall fix the prices and conditions therefor
and shall require the applicant to install all pipes, mains and connections
at his own cost and to restore all roads, sidewalks and other property
to their original condition. Said provisions shall not apply to those
water users who are presently being supplied water upon the date of
enactment of this section, and they may continue to receive such water
from the Village of Suffern as long as such users comply with the
other provisions of this article.
The owner of property into which water is introduced by a service
pipe will be required to maintain at his own cost and expense said
service pipe from the curb box and the curb box and curb stop and
fixtures provided for delivering or supplying water for any purpose.
The curb box must be kept in view and the top thereof even with the
sidewalk or street grade at all times and in a serviceable condition.
In the event that service and fixtures are not kept in good repair,
the Village and the Water Department reserve the right to terminate
water service or to make necessary repairs and charge the costs to
the property owner. The service pipes from the water main must be
laid at the proper depth, as indicated in this article. The Water
Department shall not be responsible for the freezing of any service
lines.
[Amended 3-12-1990 by L.L. No. 3-1990; 7-20-1992 by L.L. No.
4-1992]
A.
All water meters must be of a type that registers water use in cubic
feet and must be of a type and kind approved by the Department of
Public Works. Plumbers installing house or other plumbing shall leave
sufficient horizontal space between the meter ball valves, the space
being as follows:
|
Meter
|
Horizontal Space
(inches)
|
|---|---|
|
5/8-inch
|
13 1/2
|
|
3/4-inch
|
14 1/2
|
|
1-inch
|
16
|
B.
On and after the first day of October 1992, all new installations
must be equipped with a Village-approved meter interface unit.
[Amended 7-20-1992 by L.L. No. 4-1992]
A.
The Water Department may refuse to allow the water for such services
to be turned on until this article is complied with. Allowance will
not be made for any water bill where the charges result from failure
on the part of the owner or consumer to properly repair any broken,
frozen or defective fixtures or service. All water passing through
a meter will be charged for, whether used or wasted. If a meter gets
out of order and fails to register, the consumer will be charged at
the average consumption as shown by the meter when in order. All rates
are based on semiannual consumption, and no charge will be made for
less than the minimum rate.
B.
Subsequent to the 30th day of September 1992, the Village Water Department
will charge $100 plus the cost of the meter interface unit for the
adaptation of an existing or replacement meter to remote reading capacity.
[Amended 3-12-1990 by L.L. No. 3-1990]
Persons making complaints as to the correctness of water bills
and claiming to be overcharged can, by applying to the Water Department,
have the meter examined and the dial reread or, by deposit of an amount
set by resolution of the Board of Trustees in the Standard Schedule
of Fees of the Village of Suffern[1] at the office of the Village Clerk, may have the meter
taken out and tested. If the meter is found to be correct within 3%,
the deposit will be retained as payment of the time used in testing
the meter. Should the meter be found to overregister more than 3%,
the deposit will be returned and the proper adjustment made on the
bill. The Water Department will repair all meters size 5/8 inch and
3/4 inch. All meters larger than 3/4 inch must be repaired by an authorized
repair company under Water Department supervision and paid for by
the property owner. All repairs to meters damaged by negligence, vandalism
or freezing shall be paid for by the property owner. If the meters
need attention, the Water Department should be notified at once. Plumbers
are not allowed to remove meters for repairs or any other purpose.
All persons are forbidden to break meter seals, disconnect or in any
way tamper with meters without permission from the Water Department.
[Amended 12-11-1972; 3-21-1994 by L.L. No. 3-1994; 12-20-1995 by L.L. No.
7-1995; 6-16-1997 by L.L. No. 5-1997]
Bills shall be rendered semiannually on or about May 1 and November
1 of each year and are due and payable within 30 days from such billing
date.
A.
B.
Overdue bills. All water bills not paid within the period specified in § 261-14 shall be assessed a late payment charge of 10% of the gross amount of the bill.
[Amended 7-20-1992 by L.L. No. 4-1992; 4-11-2005 by L.L. No.
2-2005; 5-7-2007 by L.L. No. 8-2007]
C.
All billings will be done on a meter basis and not on a customer
basis.
Water furnished to any property for any purpose stands charged
against such property regardless of change of ownership, and the Water
Department reserves the right to discontinue the service from such
premises for any unpaid bill or bills accumulated by the former owner
or owners and to refuse to turn the same on again until all arrears
and penalties are paid. In the case of a transfer of a property, the
Water Department should be immediately notified so that proper adjustment
may be made of any charges or repair bills against such property.
In case the water is turned off by any agent of the Water Department
for proper cause, no person shall turn water on again without permission
from the Water Department.
Persons wishing to discontinue the use of water must give written
notice thereof to the Village Clerk previous to the billing for the
current period; otherwise they will be liable for rent for the ensuing
six months.
The Superintendent of Public Works may discontinue water service
and shut off the supply from any premises, the owner or occupant of
which has failed to comply with the provisions of any ordinance relating
to the character and construction and maintenance of pipes and connection
and the use of the water or the percentage of waste of water. Such
service will not be resumed until the cause for such discontinuance
is removed and the expense of shutting off and turning on the water,
if any, is paid.
When the water supply to any premises is shut off by the direction
of the Superintendent of Public Works, it shall not be turned on again
without the permission of said Superintendent.
All persons who hereafter make application for water service
or who continue the use of the water service after the taking effect
of the foregoing article will be deemed to have assented thereto and
to have agreed to conform to the provisions of said article and to
pay the rates hereby established.
[Amended 5-13-1974; 9-27-1976 by L.L. No. 3-1976; 7-13-1983 by L.L. No.
5-1983; 5-29-1985 by L.L. No. 4-1985; 7-20-1992 by L.L. No.
4-1992]
The following rates will be charged semiannually:
A.
(Reserved)[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Former Subsection A, concerning water rates for consumers within the Village, as last amended 5-7-2008 by L.L. No. 3-2008, was removed at the direction of the Village in connection with L.L. No. 4-2009, adopted 5-4-2009. See now § 261-15A(1).
B.
(Reserved)[2]
[2]
Editor's Note: Former Subsection B, concerning water rates for consumers outside the Village limits, as last amended 5-7-2008 by L.L. No. 3-2008, was removed at the direction of the Village in connection with L.L. No. 4-2009, adopted 5-4-2009. See now § 261-15A(2).
C.
Surcharges for manual reading. Water bills of customers who have
declined to provide access for the installation of meter interface
units will be surcharged $50 for each manual meter reading. The manual
meter reading surcharge will apply to each billing period for which
an actual or estimated bill is rendered.
[Amended 3-5-2018 by L.L.
No. 5-2018]
D.
Charge for final readings per customer request: $25 per visit.
[Amended 3-21-1994 by L.L. No. 3-1994]
E.
For purposes of this article, the term "unit" is defined to mean
100 cubic feet of water consumed.
[Added 4-10-2006 by L.L. No. 2-2006; amended 4-9-2007 by L.L. No.
7-2007]
All fire hydrants must meet the specifications of the Department
of Public Works and may only be installed at such locations specified
by the Department of Public Works. All hydrants are under the control
of the Water Department. No person shall use a wrench for opening
hydrants except one furnished for that purpose. No person except an
authorized employee of the Department or of a Fire Department or a
person holding a written permit from the Water Department shall disturb
any hydrant or take any water therefrom under any circumstances whatever.
In case damage is done by any person having a permit and taking water
from a hydrant for construction or other purposes, the holder of the
permit shall pay such damages and all costs and expenses that may
be incurred by reason thereof. When necessary to make temporary connection
with the fire hydrants, standard hydrant wrenches and reducing caps,
furnished by the Department, must be used, for which a deposit of
$25 each must be made. These deposits will be refunded if equipment
is returned in good condition. Any person causing damage to a fire
hydrant by collision or otherwise will be held responsible for any
damage thereby, and such person must immediately report to the Police
Department the name and address of the driver and the location of
the hydrant.
A.
Any person or persons, corporation or corporations, company or companies or partnership or partnerships violating any of the provisions of this article applying to the operation of the Suffern Village Waterworks shall be subject to the penalties provided in § 1-12 of Chapter 1, General Provisions.
[Amended 3-12-1990 by L.L. No. 3-1990]
B.
The imposition of a penalty for any violation of this article shall
not excuse the violation nor permit it to continue. The violator shall,
where possible, correct and remedy such violation forthwith. Any unreasonable
delay shall constitute a separate offense.
