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Low storefront buildings and a street corner in downtown Alpine, Texas, under a blue sky
Downtown Alpine in 2014. The City Council meets Tuesday at its chambers on West Holland Avenue. (Photo: Carol M. Highsmith / Library of Congress via Wikimedia Commons, Public domain)
Politics & Government

Sidney Sherman

October 20, 2026 · 2 min read

Alpine Council Votes on $2.8 Million Lease for Smart Water and Gas Meters

Sole-source meter purchases and a 10-year CoBank lease are on Tuesday's agenda, along with a fix for utility billing errors and an uncontested mayor's race.

The Alpine City Council will vote Tuesday on replacing the city’s water meters, and its gas meters in Alpine and Fort Davis, with remote-read smart meters paid for through a 10-year lease of up to $2.8 million.

The council meets Oct. 20 at City Council Chambers, 803 W. Holland Avenue, with a workshop at 4 p.m. and the regular meeting at 5:30 p.m., according to the agenda.

The meter plan

Three resolutions are up together, according to the meeting packet. One would buy Itron smart gas meters and equipment from EGW Utility Solutions as a sole-source purchase. Another would buy Master Meter smart water meters from Premier Waterworks Inc., also sole source, without competitive bidding. The third would approve a lease financing agreement through CoBank “in an amount not to exceed $2,800,000.”

The staff summary says the money would cover equipment, communications, software, installation and training. It lists the goals as better meter reading, leak detection and billing accuracy, and lower manual reading costs.

A CoBank lease quote dated Oct. 5 lays out four terms on $2.8 million, each ending with a $1 purchase:

  • 60 monthly payments of $54,906.53.

  • 84 payments of $41,948.14.

  • 96 payments of $37,966.55.

  • 120 payments of $32,505.14.

By Dock Line’s math, the 10-year option adds up to about $3.9 million in payments. The quote says payments are tied to Farm Credit Leasing’s daily cost of funds and are subject to change until booking. It adds a fee of 40 basis points of the asset cost, which works out to $11,200. The resolution leaves final terms to review.

Two blue water meters mounted on a red brick wall with pipes

Water meters on a building in Seoul, South Korea, shown for illustration. Alpine’s plan would replace its meters with remote-read units. Photo: Basile Morin / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Billing problems

The council will also discuss ending “vacation status” on utility accounts. Billing Supervisor Raquel Lujan reported errors when accounts come off that status. In one example, garbage charges jumped from $46.85 to $240.50 and tax charges from $3.75 to $19.84, an increase of $209.74 in one billing period. Under the proposal, customers who are away would notify the utility office while their accounts stay on normal billing.

Power, and an uncontested mayor

Another resolution would join the Texas Coalition for Affordable Power, a nonprofit political subdivision that buys electricity for local governments. It would also approve a Gexa Energy service agreement for city power starting Dec. 1, 2026.

The council is also set to declare Mayor Catherine Eaves elected as an unopposed candidate and cancel the mayoral race on the Nov. 3 ballot. Two special use permits for short-term rentals, at 403 W. Holland Avenue and 205 W. Avenue B, are on the consent agenda.

Smart meters send readings over a network, which raises its own security questions. Dock Line looked at that in The Water Still Moves Through Pipes. The Threat Can Come Through a Wire.

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