Green River workshop details $55 million water/wastewater plan; council hires HDR to assess tanks

Savannah Page, senior consultant with NewGen, told the Green River City Council at a workshop that a five‑year cost‑of‑service study projects about $55 million in capital needs for the city’s water and wastewater utilities and includes proposed multi‑year rate increases to cover those costs. The council on the same night approved a professional services agreement with HDR Engineering Inc. not to exceed $9,750 to perform a structural review of the city’s three water tanks.

The study, which Page said is a forecast for fiscal years 2026–2030, breaks the projected capital program into roughly $9 million for water projects and $46 million for wastewater projects, with about $50.5 million of that expected to be debt‑funded. Page said debt payments from those projects would begin in 2027. She said the study’s test year is the city’s adopted fiscal 2025 budget and that the net revenue requirement for the test year is about $3.1 million for water and $2.0 million for wastewater.

Why it matters: the study’s capital plan and debt profile drive the recommended rate changes, and the council must weigh rate affordability against the need to preserve reserves and pay debt service. Page said the proposed water changes are modest and phased, while wastewater increases are…