‘I have faith finally’: How a Richmond woman got help with $5,000 water bills

RICHMOND, Va. (WWBT) - After more than three years of water bills reaching thousands of dollars, a Richmond woman said she finally got help Tuesday at the city’s first People’s Day event.

Maria Curran’s most recent bill came in at close to $5,000. She’s surprisingly calm about the amount now because it’s been the norm since 2023.

“I don’t have a leak. We’ve ruled that out a long time ago, but they have replaced my meter several times,” Curran said.

Curran has been in touch with Richmond’s Department of Public Utilities pretty frequently about her issue, but it still hasn’t been solved. The City figured out it is an issue on its end, but it has not been fixed.

Tuesday morning, after hearing about ‘People’s Day’ on 12 On Your Side, Curran took a stack of bills from recent years to City Hall, and she was not alone.

“This is a really rare opportunity,” Curran said. “The customer service people who get to look in the system are checking things.”

She’s been on a promise payment plan to ensure her water does not get turned off, but Curran has been coming into City Hall every month to make sure she’s not paying too much, which has not been convenient.

Curran left the event with the most progress she’s seen in the last three years. She was told the piece that transmits her reading to the city is faulty.

“We have action steps. I’m going to get an answer by the 26th,” Curran said. “Shamir, she’s very dedicated, and she’s going to follow up, and I have a lot of confidence.”

Curran was able to explain her situation face-to-face with DPU representatives who understand the details of her issue.

“I feel like once we have all these adjustments made, if I don’t have a balance, then I can stop promise pay, and if I have a credit, I’ll get credited. So I have faith, finally,” she said.

While ‘People’s Day’ featured several departments from the city, Public Utilities was the most popular section. There was even an entire room set aside to get people help, rather than a singular table.

DPU was the focus of the event this time, as the department is rolling out some updates that have caused some headaches recently.

About 15,000 people recently had other issues with payments being processed because of a system change on DPU’s end. Since then, utility disconnections and flow restrictors have been paused.

“The mayor has been pretty clear on his vision that he wants the city hall that functions,” CAO Odie Donald said. “And a part of that is when we mess up, we fess up.”

There will be other major technology upgrades across departments soon, which is why the city is continuing ‘People’s Day’ for neighbors to have a direct line to help in other areas, too.

“Each People’s Day will focus on a key community priority. Future sessions will include senior needs, youth services, and tax payments,” the city said in a release.

Another DPU-focused event in the series will be on Wednesday, June 24, at Southside Community Center from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.