Derek Lucero used to pay his water bill and move on with his life.
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“Everything has been pretty affordable up until the new meters got installed, and everything kind of went haywire,” Lucero said.
Lucero, like thousands of other Milliken residents, got a new smart water meter installed at his house in June. The town made the switch this summer to get rid of aging meters and expedited the project before it got too expensive.
“We thought, for longevity reasons, it's going to be a good thing,” Lucero said.
Soon after, he got his summer bills. His July bill was a little more than he was used to, around $200 for 8,000 gallons used.
August’s bill was a different story. It showed his small family used more than 23,000 gallons, nearly triple what his last bill said. It added up to $450. He did not change anything or find any leaks. He was confused.
“We're like, 'Holy crap, something's got to be wrong,’” Lucero said. “Never in our 18-month tenure here at this house have we ever shot to those numbers...we didn't add a hot tub or jacuzzi tub.”
He started looking for ways to decrease his water usage. He eventually shut his sprinklers off, but he worried about running afoul of HOA rules about lawns.
“It put us in a spot to where we go, ‘What are we gonna do? How are we going to pay a $450 water bill every month?’” Lucero said. “And what is another bill that's $200-$300 that you may have to now bypass to make sure that you have one of the most essential things in life?”
Lucero is not the only one. KUNC News heard from dozens of locals who have felt the sticker shock, quoting bills that were double or triple what they’d usually pay. Lucero said he knows neighbors who had their kids cut back or share baths.
KUNC News also reached out to several local Facebook groups about how Milliken residents are feeling. Several called their higher bills “outrageous.” Some said they are looking into major changes, like stopping lawn watering altogether or removing their grass. Residents from nearby Johnstown commented that they are seeing the same thing.
“My front and back yards are dead…it's nothing but weeds. We literally lost $2,000 worth of sod that we put in two and a half, three years ago,” Milliken resident Cindy Long said. “Everybody feels like it's shady. We all feel that way.”
But the board of trustees said the pricey bills are not because of the new smart meters. Those have been in the capital plan since 2024.
Instead, officials said they are being caused by a 35% rate increase that launched earlier this year to fund upgrades like infrastructure and water treatment. This big rate hike is the result of deferred smaller rate hikes over the years, and town officials said without it, they’d be “at a crisis point” by 2027.
Trustee Mindy Wakeman said it was unfortunate but necessary.
“Initially we saw some projections of 50%, 75% increase, which just was a gut punch, to be honest,” Wakeman said. “We couldn't even imagine doing that. And the 35% still felt like a gut punch.”
But residents are still reporting increases far exceeding 35%. Wakeman said this summer’s extreme drought was partially to blame. Combine increased lawn watering with the planned rate hike — that is where the numbers shoot up. But she said many factors made this a perfect storm.
“There was some confusion about where to place that blame for the changes in what felt like an overnight increase in water rates,” Wakeman said.
Wakeman also clarified that the increased rate was not used to pay for the meters. It is strictly to pay for future water priorities.
“Any dollars that go into that water fund aren't used to fix roads, aren't used in any other area of town,” Wakeman said. “It's specific to that water infrastructure.”
Town officials admit the smart meter rollout was flawed and not well communicated. Some with steel-covered meters had data transmission issues, which impacted billing. But town officials said only around 50 accounts, or 2% of bills, had that issue. They still stand behind their decision.
"The new meters are accurate,” Town Administrator Greg Brinck said. “We have gone out and done field accuracy testing and calibration for customers who have felt like their meters are out of compliance, and have not found any meters that are out of compliance there.”
They know residents are frustrated. They said to keep calling town hall — and to be patient with their small staff — as they get into the specifics about individual bills. They also mailed flyers explaining the rate increases and the new app.
“We're not trying to pull one over on anyone,” Brinck said. “We're just trying to appropriately account for the water that's being consumed, and then charge for it in a way that covers our expenses.”
Derek Lucero took action long before he got one of those flyers. He attended a town hall meeting and chatted with town staff directly, and found out he was charged for 17 extra days. But they explained to Lucero that most of the bill data was accurate – they were just lumping some months together in billing.
“It sounds like their software that used to report from the old meter system wasn't quite correctly linked in with the new water meter system,” Lucero said. “We were underbilled in June, but then overbilled in August to accommodate and balance each other out.”
Lucero said his September bill seemed more accurate, but he’s heard from neighbors and friends that are still experiencing issues. He is keeping a closer eye on his bills moving forward. Overall, he wishes the town could have been more proactive.
“There was nobody on that was really like, ‘Hey, you know, we've noticed this,’” Lucero said. “We're bearing the burden of making our voices heard and bringing it to their attention to fix.”
Even without the meter issues, it is still a higher water bill for Lucero. He wonders how much he and other residents will need to keep funneling toward the water fund and is wary of what future summer bills will look like if the drought and rate increases continue.
