Telling the Stories of Success in East Orange, New Jersey

The City of East Orange Water Commission (EOWC) located in Essex County, NJ provides water and wastewater services to about 65,000 area residents.  As with many communities in North America, East Orange was facing a serious budget deficit, in addition to insufficient water management expertise.

  In 2015, the city asked Veolia to provide management advisory services to help put the EOWC on the path toward financial stability.  An important part of our efforts focused on working with staff to implement long-needed capital projects, improve customer service, develop budgets, review procurement processes, and identify efficiencies in the areas of operations, labor and energy use; together, we found almost immediate success.
 

"Within the first 60 days of entering our contract with Veolia, the EOWC experienced hundreds of thousands of dollars in cost savings. In six months, we were able to close a $4 million shortfall on a $23 million budget.” Mayor Lester E. Taylor III

In a recent op-ed in New Jersey Municipalities, Mayor Taylor outlined the past struggles that created significant hurdles within EOWC and laid out his long-term roadmap to efficiency and building public trust.

Capital planning to strengthen water infrastructure, operational efficiency plans, staff training, and customer service software and management improvements are integral to Veolia and EOWC’s ongoing efforts.

 

"As water systems in other cities across the country are crumbling, we are making a substantial investment in our own infrastructure so that residents can continue to have access to clean and safe drinking water for generations to come." Mayor Taylor in his monthly letter to the community.

Click the image of the article from Mayor Taylor at the right to read how East Orange is putting its water utility back on track and click here to read our case study about our partnership with East Orange.