One more meter reader will help do the trick

A committee of the Walhalla City Council will recommend the hiring of an additional full-time meter reader to help over-burdened staff churn out water bills quicker. And that, believes Mayor Danny Edwards, will help get bills into the hands of customers sooner before late penalties apply. But that’s not the entire solution, as explained during city’s utilities committee meeting. Scott Parris, utilities director, says the addition of a part time City Hall office worker, now in training, is going to help. Longer term there’s consensus that Walhalla’s switch to automatic meter reading might be the best correction action overall. The mayor and council last evening launched into a lengthy discussion of the water billing problems with David Underwood, chairman of the utilities committee, once again pressing for action. “What can we do better?” was the question that Underwood left his colleagues with.