Richmond voters approve $5 million water bond; council advances sale and financing

Richmond voters approved a $5 million general‑obligation bond on April 5, 2022, clearing the way for planned water‑system investments identified in the Water System Master Plan.

City staff and Olsson consultants told the council the Master Plan assumed $1 million of ARPA funding plus a $5 million bond to address immediate needs: plant upgrades, leak detection, and prioritized water‑main replacements. Officials told the council that a 0.3800 tax levy was likely to keep the annual cost near the city’s 10‑year average and that it would cost the owner of a $150,000 home about $108.30 per year.

After the election, the council approved a series of financing steps: it adopted a go‑to‑market resolution and engaged Piper Sandler and Gilmore & Bell for underwriting and bond counsel work. The council also approved a separate refunding of the city’s 2014 revenue bonds; staff said the refunding reduced future interest costs and produced estimated interest‑savings analyses favorable to taxpayers. Documents for the $5 million General Obligation Bonds, Series 2022, were authorized in mid‑2022 and the refunding revenue bond (Combined Waterworks and Sewerage System Refunding Revenue Bond, Series 2022) closed in May.

Mayor Mike Wright and Finance Director Rebecca Hoeflicker said the timing aimed to capture market conditions while preserving low projected levy impacts. Councilors voted to proceed with the bond sale and to approve the refunding authorizations in separate motions.

What comes next: staff and consultants are advancing design for prioritized water‑main replacements and plant upgrades, and will return to council with project schedules, contract bids and funding details.