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CITY OF KIRKWOOD WATER DEPARTMENT
STOP BOX LOCATION SERVICES POLICY

If, in the event the City’s Water Department is contacted by a property seller, buyer, or either party’s real estate agent or private inspector attempting to locate and mark the existing curb stop box, we will provide the following services:

1)                  We will briefly research records in an attempt to determine whether the water meter is inside the basement or outside in a yard pit.  If it is determined that the meter is outside in a pit, the Water Department will assume a valve exists within that pit.  It will be the responsibility of the requestor to remove the pit cover if they wish to confirm a valve exists within the pit and/or to confirm if the valve functions.  The existence of a functional valve in an outside meter pit will, in our opinion, satisfy any party’s requirement of an accessible shutoff valve outside, in which case the location of an existing stop box would not be required.  NOTE:  The City of Kirkwood does not require the existence of a stop box be verified.

2)                  If we determine that the water meter is located inside the premises, we will furnish, if available, measurements which will assist the requestor in locating the stop box and/or we will mail or fax a copy of any drawing (if available).  The requestor will be expected to make a good faith effort to locate the stop box themselves using records supplied by the Water Department and probes/shovels to excavate, since most stop boxes can be several inches below grade.

3)                  If, after the requestor has made a good faith effort to locate the stop box themselves, and have been unsuccessful, they may request that the Water Department dispatch an employee to the site in an attempt to locate the stop box. That employee will, using available records and a metal detector, attempt to locate the stop box.  Employees are instructed to spend no more than ten minutes in this effort.  If the employee locates the stop box, they will mark it with blue paint and/or a blue flag. They may also mark the location of the area in which they feel the stop box exists based on readings obtained from metal detectors, although they may not excavate to verify that the stop box truly exists in that location.