The Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners on Tuesday approved an intergovernmental agreement to purchase the Lawrenceville Water Distribution System. Under the agreement, Gwinnett County will take ownership of the city of Lawrenceville’s water distribution system on December 1, 2020.  

Gwinnett has agreed to make a one-time payment of $400,000 with a guarantee of a minimum of $13.3 million in repairs, replacements, rehabilitation, and upgrades to the system over the next 10 years.  

“Every day, we produce more than 70 million gallons of water to be used by the residents and businesses of Gwinnett County. We are fortunate to have a strong water system backed by highly trained employees and plentiful resources,” said Charlotte Nash, chairman of the Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners. “Our Department of Water Resources has a long history of proactively managing County water infrastructure, and they will use this experience to update and maintain Lawrenceville’s system.”

At separate special called meetings Monday, the city of Lawrenceville and Gwinnett County Water and Sewerage Authority agreed to the plans to sell the system to Gwinnett County. Lawrenceville will retain ownership of its wells, storage tanks, and water treatment plants.

Over the next several weeks, city of Lawrenceville water customers will begin to see Gwinnett County employees preparing for the transfer. The County’s contractor, Bermex, will begin reading meters in the city on December 1, 2020. Lawrenceville customers can expect to see a welcome packet with more information from the Gwinnett County Department of Water Resources in the coming weeks.   

As a result of the purchase, Lawrenceville residents will see a slight increase in their monthly water bill. Gwinnett County will use this revenue to replace aging pipes and perform preventive maintenance on the system, which helps ensure the safety of Gwinnett County residents and high-quality drinking water.  

“By leveraging our resources to rehabilitate the system, we can ensure that Lawrenceville residents continue to be served with water services that meet the Gwinnett Standard during the transition and beyond,” said District 4 Commissioner Marlene Fosque. “We’re excited to welcome Lawrenceville customers to Gwinnett Water Resources.”  

While customer account numbers will change to align with the Gwinnett system, meter numbers will stay the same. Payment history, contact information, and customer usage data will all transfer to Gwinnett County. Credit card and bank account information will not be transferred. Lawrenceville customers will still receive a bill for all other utilities provided by the city.  

Once customers receive their first Gwinnett County water bill, they can visit Gwinnetth2o.com to set up their account and pay their bill. They may also contact Customer Care at 678.376.6800, or visit the office in person at 684 Winder Highway in Lawrenceville.  

More information about the transition can be found at gcga.us/onegwinnettwater.