Fort Smith may ask for $10 million in federal help to replace water meters

A resolution allowing the city of Fort Smith to apply for $10 million in federal funding to help replace water meters will be considered Tuesday (March 3) at Fort Smith Board of Directors meeting. The federal program requires a 25% match.

According to a memo from Chris Hoover, the city’s grants and governmental relations manager, the application for federal dollars through the Community Project Funding (CPF) will go through the office of U.S. Rep. Steve Womack, R-Rogers. The money would come form the federal fiscal year 2027 budget.

“After evaluating the feasibility of several projects, it has been determined that the replacement of water meters within the City of Fort Smith would be of great benefit to the city’s water utility, would constitute a compelling funding need, and is eligible for funding through guidelines promulgated by the US Environmental Protection Agency,” Hoover noted in a memo.

The funding request has to be submitted to Womack’s office by March 6.

Matt Meeker, the city’s director of public works, has said at least 40,000 new meters are needed to help address the issue of water loss and ensure all customers are paying for the water they use. In a recent board meeting, Meeker said the old meters are a “weak point in our system.” He said the city’s public works employees can replace about 10,000 meters a year, but it would cost at least $2.6 million annually. And while he said the city can save money by replacing meters in-house, he said the city would not see an immediate recovery of costs through more revenue.

Replacing water meters is one part of a larger effort to address numerous water system improvements.

In his memo, Hoover said Meeker believes that a “proven meter manufacturer is a vital investment for the long term viability of the city’s water system, directly advancing revenue recovery by addressing aging and failing infrastructure.”

“As the Department of Public Works already plans to include incremental funding in its next few years’ budget proposals to incrementally replace the nearly 40,000 water meters with in-house staff, these operating funds could be redirected to match the CPF funds if awarded and would be supplemented by utility reserve funds if needed,” Hoover noted.

The board in August 2025 rejected a plan put forth by city staff to begin the process of replacing water meters in the city. The estimated cost for that project ranged between $20 million and $48 million. Utilities Director Lance McAvoy said in 2024 the city had to write off more than $1 million in leakage adjustments because of old meters.

The board also is set to vote on a modification of the city’s federal consent decree. Key provisions that benefit the city, according to Calamita, include an 11.5-year extension of the original 15-year deadline that is set to expire Jan. 1, 2027. The proposed plan moves the compliance deadline to June 30, 2038. After decades of failing to maintain the city sewer system, EPA and DOJ officials executed a consent decree in 2014 with the city of Fort Smith that required certain improvements to the city’s sewer system.

A measure to hire an executive search firm in the search for a city administrator also is on the board’s Tuesday agenda.