OGDEN — Outages in the Pineview Water Systems service area have been plaguing secondary water customers this month, but the agency says it is catching up fast on a backlog of line breaks.

Because of the region’s extended drought, Pineview delayed its annual service start until May 2, more than two weeks later than usual. “During normal times, we would have had that additional two weeks to get things resolved before the weather really warmed up,” the Pineview general manager, Benjamin Quick, said Thursday.

Every offseason, line breaks occur through contractor errors or other causes, and Pineview crews usually can handle them before most users begin tapping the system, he said.

“We have done 61 main line repairs and we have approximately 30 that we need to do to get caught up,” Quick said.

Armando DeCarlo, who lives in a new subdivision in North Ogden, and some other customers with shriveling yards this week were not sympathetic when told by the district staff that there are so many line issues.

He said he called the district several times and was assured the system was still charging, then was informed the district has had dozens of line breaks. In any case, DeCarlo said on Wednesday that it’s been more than three weeks since when the system should have been on, and he and other homeowners in the subdivision still are waiting.

“Fifty yards away, they’ve got water,” DeCarlo said, referring to an older development close by.

Another Pineview customer, whose home is in the northeast section of Ogden City, had similar complaints. “OK, we’re in a drought, and we are supposed to be able to water twice a week, but with no water all the lawns are dying,” said the man, who did not want his name reported.

Both men also raised the question of taxes they pay to the water district. They said they should get a refund for the lack of service.

“They’re poorly managed, or they don’t know how to manage a water pipeline,” DeCarlo said. “They should be accountable to the taxpayers.”

Pineview Water Systems is an entity comprised of three special service districts, with separate boards of trustees. Funds to run the secondary water systems are collected in a tax levy that appears on homeowners’ property tax bills.

Quick said Pineview has 28,000 customers from South Ogden and Washington Terrace in the south to Brigham City to the north and Plain City to the west.

“It’s been all hands on deck,” Quick said, adding that he just returned himself from working on a line break repair.

“We have been hit by an unusual and difficult year,” Quick said. “I am sorry for their water inconveniences and I would like them to know we are doing everything we can physically and financially get them back in water.”

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