Miscommunication with KC Water has nonprofit struggling with extremely high bills

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) - A Northland nonprofit organization is barely staying afloat, and it’s all because of their water bill.

For six decades, Northland Clothing Center has helped to clothe those in need. Now, the charity is facing a struggle of its own.

“We first noticed it like two years ago. We notified KC Water, and we got a credit from KC Water,” said Marjie Siegfried-Stuber. She told KCTV5 in July of 2024 that she noticed something was clearly wrong.

“It came to our attention again that our water bill was still exceptionally high,” said Margie. “Not by $50 or $60, but it went from $120 a month to $500 a month.”

A 200% increase. So she called KC Water. Siegfried-Stuber relayed that she was told to shut off the water to the building.

She did, and it still showed usage.

A call to Leakstoppers, a KC Water program to help consumers with water conservation, resulted in getting her water lines checked. Still nothing.

Over the course of eight months, Marjie made about 40 calls, taking 40 pages of notes.

“They have told us on three different occasions they would replace our water meter, which they admit is over 15 years old, which is almost the full lifespan of a water meter,” said Marjie.

November was the last call made, and since then she has heard nothing.

Siegfried-Stuber called KCTV5, and so we called KC Water. After months of no response for her, we received the very same afternoon we called. KC Water stated:

Two days later, KCTV5 cameras were rolling when a KC Water leak investigator showed up to Northland Clothing and found a leak. Previously, Leakstoppers from KC Water had looked for a leak and told Siegfried-Stuber they would be in contact if they found anything. But she never heard back.

The city told KCTV5 it was a miscommunication.

“In 15 minutes, he identified what he believes to be the problem,” said Marjie.

The problem finally identified, but it’s only Marjie who is further frustrated.

“Why weren’t they here in July? Why are they just today having the right person come out to this property?” asked Marjie. “The only reason why it escalated at all was the investigative reporting that you’ve done. Had KCTV5 not been involved and called them on Tuesday of this week, we would still not have a response.”

Despite the response, her water bills keep flowing.

“Our bill for February is due tomorrow, I will pay $483.77 tomorrow to KC Water,” said Marjie.

Money that could count towards so much more.

“If I were paying what I should be paying, we would be able to buy coats or shoes for 40 Kansas City children,” said Margie. “That’s the real tragedy here.”

On top of being told to hire a professional plumber, Marjie was also asked to sign a document saying, “the leak must be fixed within 10 days, or her water would be shut off.”

At the time KCTV5 was there, a representative told her the shut-off would not happen, but Marjie doesn’t believe it.

Siegfried-Stuber said she’s going to demand for a $5,000 reimbursement for her and volunteers' time and effort spent on the ordeal, but that number could increase now with plumbing costs.

KCTV5 will continue to follow up on this issue.

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