Ontario Municipal Code Art. 7 Operation and Maintenance

(a) The Municipal Utilities Company shall maintain the service connection extending from the water main to the meter. The applicant shall install and maintain all pipes and fixtures extending or lying on the outlet side of the meter, excluding a City provided shutoff valve, twelve (12)-inch brass nipple and coupling. The Municipal Utilities Company shall set and maintain a meter on each service connection and the customer or owner shall be held liable for any damage to the meter due to his or her negligence. Every service connection shall be equipped with an angle curb stop, or valve, on the inlet side of the meter. Such valve or angle curb stop is intended for the exclusive use of the Municipal Utilities Company to control the water supply through a service connection. If the angle curb stop, or valve, is damaged due to the customer or owners use or negligence, the customer or owner shall be liable for replacement costs.

(b) The City assumes no responsibility for the maintenance and operation of a customer’s water system beyond the service connection and point of ownership by the City. All plumbing, water piping, fixtures, connections, devices and related appurtenances beyond the service connection, and beyond the City’s point of ownership, shall be maintained by the customer in “good standing condition.”

The City shall have the right of ingress to and egress from the customer’s property during reasonable hours for any purpose reasonably related to the furnishing of water services and the exercise of any and all rights secured to it by law or these rules, including inspection of the customer’s piping and equipment for compliance with the Municipal Code and these rules.

A customer shall provide and maintain reasonable access for City representatives to all service connections, meters, backflow prevention devices, or other facilities pertinent to water service installed on his or her premises.

(a) No person shall place, dispose, or deposit or permit the placement, disposal or deposit of oil, toxic, hazardous or contaminated liquid or waste, trash, dirt, building materials or other substances, objects or obstructions in, on or around meter boxes, and it shall be the responsibility of each applicant, owner, or customer to prevent meter boxes, City hydrants or other City facilities from becoming obstructed or obscured by such applicant, owner, or customer’s trees, shrubs, plants or in any other manner so as to impede their use or access to them or make their location difficult to determine.

(b) The City shall not be held responsible nor liable for any damage or cost for the replacement or repair of any ground cover and/or plants, shrubs, or other obstructions, which may be removed or damaged while City personnel are using the right-of- way or easements.

(c) If such substances, objects or obstructions are not cleaned and removed or are permitted to obscure or impede such facilities, the City may, after providing reasonable notice to the applicant, developer, customer, or owner accomplish the cleaning and removal and charge the applicant, developer, customer, or owner for the cost of doing so.

(d) The applicant, developer, customer, or owner’s failure to comply with the clearance and right-of-way obligations set forth in this chapter shall be deemed a violation of the chapter and termination of service.

No person shall not install any quick-closing valves or other equipment or device which shall cause excessive pressure surges in the City water system without prior written approval by the Engineer.

Where a change or size increase of an existing service connection or meter is requested by a customer, the charges shall be the same as for a new service and any fees not previously paid shall be required.

The City shall not accept any responsibility for the maintenance of pressure and reserves the right to discontinue service while making emergency repairs, and the like. Customers depending upon a continuous supply should provide emergency storage.

(§ 4, Ord. 3297, eff. March 18, 2025)