I would stick in some English Lavender right now as it should be in bloom until Sept/Oct. and will have a bright purple color- avoid boxwood bushes as they smell like cat urine. 

I would be inclined to order a deck cleaner/wash, a deck paint of your color preference, and general paint/staining supplies (brushes, rollers) from a nearby Home Depot/Lowe's, pay for them, and have them available for pick-up by the tenant at the contractor's desk. 

Within the field of I/O psychology recruitment and selection is of particular interest when choosing sales forces at Fortune 1000 companies, Navy Seals and professional athletes in MLB, NBA, NHL and NFL.

After all, this bump isn't driven by psychology (hey, buy a house, make a ton of money!

Does anyone know whether or not I can build a box around the meter to allow for me to paint the same color as the brick of the home, and leave it to where the electric company can access? 

They may like colors that you think are ugly, they may not be as tidy as you would like them to be, but they are paying the rent. 

Go with colored envelope.

An activated carbon filter will take care of the color, as that's just caused by dissolved organic material.

Colors, styles, materials, etc...any direction is appreciated.

Did you say something to the inspector about the person's race, color, ancestry, national origin, citizenship...?