San Luis residents decide on paying more to lower tap water temp

SAN LUIS, Ariz. — About 18 households in the Frontera Estates subdivision here will decide whether to pay a $23.15 monthly charge for a utility hookup intended to reduce the temperature of their tap water in the summer.

The city hopes to lower the heat by increasing the overall flow of water to the residences on San Luis Lane between 5th and 6th Avenues.

The additional charge, which would be added to the residents’ monthly water bills, would pay for an underground line connecting the line that serves San Luis Lane with another line serving residents of Las Casitas apartments on nearby 6th Avenue.

Eulogio Vera, the city’s public works director, stressed there’s no guarantee the connection will help reduce the temperature of the water that can exceed 103 temperatures as it comes out the tap in the summer.

“After looking at all the options, that’s the proposal that the residents have agreed to try and they’ve said they are willing to pay” the added cost, Vera said.

At a public hearing slated for Dec. 13, the city will present a proposed agreement under which the additional monthly charge of $23.15 would be assessed to the households over a three-year period to finance the project. If not opposed by residents, the city council could formally adopt it.

Only the 18 households along San Luis Lane would be assessed to pay the cost of the test project estimated to cost $15,000.

Hot tap water has been an ongoing complaint raised by San Luis residents.

A study done by Nicklaus Engineering for the city in 2015 founded that water came out of the tap at 116 degrees in one of the homes on San Luis Lane during the hottest months. Neither that study nor previous ones found that the water lines or the water distribution system were factors for the high temperatures.

“The water lines were checked,” Vega said. “Everything is constructed according to state and federal standards, and in the homes the lines are within code. There’s nothing the city could have without it being paid for by those residents.”