THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, September 22, 1995 TAG: 9509210203
SECTION: VIRGINIA BEACH BEACON PAGE: 03 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JO-ANN CLEGG, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 91 lines
Question: How do you manage to save water when you're the person paying the bill, but it's somebody else who's taking the showers and doing the laundry?
Answer: It's not easy.
Nevertheless, at least 51 of the individuals and corporations who own or manage multiple-unit rental properties in the city have demonstrated that they're willing to give it a try.
Two apartment complexes, Heron's Point in the Laskin Road area and College Square in the western part of Kempsville, have been so successful at cutting consumption that they recently received special awards from the mayor for their efforts.
At Heron's Point, which has 96 units, water consumption dropped by 27 percent in the first bimonthly billing period after the owners replaced existing fixtures with newer ultra low-flush toilets (ULFT's). The change amounted to a savings for the city of 224,000 gallons of precious water for the two-month period.
The percentage of savings at College Square was slightly lower - 24 percent - but the amount of water saved in the 282-unit complex was a whopping 729,000 gallons.
The equipment replacements are the result of water conservation training provided by the Virginia Beach Public Utilities department and a significant monetary incentive last year for the multi-family communities.
Danny Hamm, maintenance supervisor at College Square, was one of those who participated in the initial three-hour training. Afterward he convinced the property owner to shift to the ULFT's, which save about half the number of gallons used each time a commode is flushed.
With the Public Utilities Department rebating $75 on the purchase of each commode, it was an opportune time to make the move.
Hamm and a helper did the installations themselves. That went smoothly. The paper work was a bit more challenging because at the time a separate form was required for each of the 600 commodes that were replaced at College Park.
Hamm also would like the city to change to individual metering. Currently the city reads meters for each building, but not for each separate unit. ``If people aren't paying directly for something, they're not very careful about how they use it,'' Hamm said. ``We were master-metered for electricity originally,'' he added, ``but when electric bills shot up so high we went to separate metering.''
When tenants had to pay their own electric bills, usage declined significantly. Hamm says that the same would happen if tenants had to pay for the amount of water they actually use.
In the meantime, owners of multi-family complexes are working to motivate tenants to be more water conscious. Techniques for encouraging tenants to conserve are an important part of the curriculum in the city's three-hour course for owners and managers.
Kitty Cowan, resident manager at Heron's Point, has incorporated many of those ideas along with some of her own in the articles she writes for her tenant newsletter.
``Everything we learned in the training was common sense,'' she said, ``but they're things you just don't think about.''
The newsletter suggestions, along with replacement of 178 older model commodes and high flow shower heads, led not only to the savings of 224,000 gallons of water per billing period but to a significant dollar savings as well.
The ULFT's initial cost was $15,091, but after a $13,350 rebate from Public Utilities it cost the owners of the apartments only $1,741. Even that amount should be recouped within six months because the complex's water savings have been averaging $643 per billing period.
Cowan has nothing but praise for the cooperation Heron's Point got from the city.
``We literally ran back from the training and started making changes,'' she said. ``We're always interested in saving money, and we couldn't believe how fast we got our rebates back.
``I strongly advise any apartment owners to take advantage of the training and the rebate program,'' Cowan added. ``I tell them they should hop on the toilet, so to speak, while they can. It's too good a deal to pass up.'' MEMO: Those who don't want to miss the training opportunity should call
427-4105. Morning and afternoon sessions will be offered through the
end of next week.
ILLUSTRATION: Photo by JO-ANN CLEGG
Danny Hamm, maintenance supervisor at College Square apartment
complex, participated in the initial three-hour training to help cut
water consumption at multiple-unit properties. He helped install 600
low-flush commodes that saved the city 729,000 gallons of water.
by CNB