Arvada outlines utility capital plan, bond sale and scenarios that could double bills under full funding

City staff presented long-term capital plans and financial scenarios for Arvada’s water, wastewater and stormwater utilities at a July 1 workshop and reported a successful competitive bond sale to help fund planned projects.

What staff presented and the bond sale

Director of Infrastructure Miss Rhodes and the utilities team summarized a 10-year capital-improvement program (CIP) and two funding scenarios for each utility fund: a minimal scenario that funds existing debt service, operations and the most immediate projects, and a fully funded scenario that would finance all identified red/orange/yellow CIP projects across the 10‑year horizon.

Staff said the city competitively sold bonds last week to support the program: roughly $90,000,000 for the Water Fund and $15,000,000 for the Sewer Fund, both with 30-year terms; the winning interest rates reported were about 4.548% for the water issuance and 4.623% for the sewer issuance. Staff said the sales came in below earlier projections and the city expects to close the sales on July 9.

Water scenarios and likely bill impacts

Staff presented two bookend scenarios for the Water Fund:

- Minimal funding scenario (funds existing debt service, operations and the most immediate projects such as the city’s gross-reservoir expansion participation and the Arvada water-plant replacement): staff estimated a 2026 variable-rate increase of roughly 5% with no fixed-fee increase and an overall 2026 revenue increase of about 4.3%.

- Fully funded scenario (funds the full 10‑year CIP): staff estimated a variable-rate increase of about 9% and a fixed monthly-fee increase of $2 (an approximate 18.3% bump to the fixed fee), for a combined overall increase of about 10.3% in 2026. Staff said that if the city fully funds the CIP in its modeling, a typical single-family annual water bill would approximately double by 2028 as master-plan projects and debt-service schedules are implemented.

Wastewater and stormwater

For the Wastewater Fund staff showed a minimal scenario with a projected overall 2026 revenue increase of about 7% and a fully funded scenario with an overall 11.3% increase. The fully funded wastewater scenario anticipates about $55,000,000 of additional debt in 2027 to complete trunk-line projects identified in the sanitary sewer master plan (the North Trunk Line and Central Ralston Trunk Line work).

For Stormwater staff proposed a narrower approach in the near term: a 6% increase that would fund drainage-improvement projects and allow staff time to finish a comprehensive stormwater prioritization. Staff proposed returning with a fuller stormwater workshop and prioritized project list later this year or in early 2026.

Smart meters and conservation tools

Staff reported progress on a citywide smart-meter replacement program: about 61% of meters have been replaced to date, with project completion targeted for 2027. Staff said smart meters will help customers track usage and give the city better data to support conservation and billing options.

Data and next steps

Council members asked for more customer-level data and asked staff to return with refined scenarios, including a mid-range option (for example, funding red and orange CIP projects but not every yellow project). Council asked staff to: (1) bring comparison metrics by customer type and by meter‑size/use category, (2) provide clearer consequence statements for individual projects (e.g., number of customers affected by a pressure‑zone failure or possible boil orders), and (3) return with follow-up reports and affordability metrics. Staff scheduled additional workshops for August and September to refine scenarios before 2026 rate setting.