Water Stolen While Home Underwent Repairs, Council Told

At their most recent meeting, Coopersburg Borough Council solicitor Chris Gittinger told council members about a case involving water woes.

Specifically, Gittinger said a borough official recently discovered that water was illegally diverted and being used while a home in the borough was undergoing renovations.

The public water supply "was turned off for a legitimate reason during the course of these repairs," Gittinger explained.

He said that when it was time for it to be turned back on, a jerry-rigged bypass system was found to be in place.

Although the exact amount of unmetered water that was used is unknown, Gittinger said it was not suspected to be a lot.

He asked council to consider assessing the property owner a fee of $100, based on the estimated amount of water that may have been used.

Another option would be to prosecute the property owner, but doing so could be costly, Gittinger said.

He also recommended that the borough look closely at the contractor who was working on the home—especially the next time that contractor "pulls a permit."

Gittinger told council that the homeowner is not suspected of creating the bypass system for the water supply, but "proving who did it sounds to me to be problematic," council president Jack Felch responded.

The evidence that the contractor was the party responsible for the illegal use of the water "is all circumstantial," he added.

"I'm kind of bothered that this contractor would get away with that," councilwoman Linda Minarik said.

Council members agreed to assess the property owner the $100 fine recommended by Gittinger, but Felch stressed that "if the property owner declines to accept this, we have not closed the door on going to court."