Ramsey council moves to sell water-treatment note to state bank and adopts 2026 sewer rates

The Borough of Ramsey on Jan. 28 voted to advance a water-treatment financing plan and approved sewer-rate changes for 2026.

Administrator reviewed a resolution authorizing the borough to sell a note from Bond Ordinance 25 of 2025 to the New Jersey Infrastructure Bank (NJI Bank) so the town could access special low-interest financing and potential principal forgiveness for the Arrow Road well PFAS treatment project. "This resolution allows the borough to sell the note from that bond ordinance to the NJI Bank and therefore become eligible for financing under the special program," the Administrator said during the meeting.

Why it matters: Council members were told that the Arrow Road project funds treatment work at Ramsey’s well sites to address PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) contamination, a long-term water-quality concern for many municipal systems. The administrator said H2M, the borough’s engineering consultant, is working with the Ramsey Water Department on treatment solutions.

The council also adopted the Ramsey Board of Public Works’ recommended 2026 sewer rates, described in the meeting as a 3.95% increase from 2025. The administrator said the increase aligns with higher costs the borough faces from the regional utility authority that operates the treatment plant that receives Ramsey’s sewer flows.

In related infrastructure business, the council approved Resolution 46 to award a one-year borough engineering services contract to Schwaned Halls and Vince after receiving three proposals to replace the retiring borough engineer. The administrator said the selected firm has previously served as the Ramsey planning-board engineer and that the experience should ease the transition.

What the council did not decide: The meeting record shows the council placed the financing authorization and rate adoption on the consent/resolution list and approved them by roll call; the meeting did not include an extended public hearing or a separate recorded downsizing of the proposed financing terms during the session.

Key implementation details noted at the meeting: the Board of Public Works is coordinating lead service-line replacement to comply with the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection mandate requiring replacement of all service lines by 2031. The board will cover the portion of service lines it owns; property owners are responsible for the portion they own. The transcript included a description of an owner reimbursement incentive, but the precise amount was ambiguously stated in the meeting record and was not clarified during the session.

The council’s actions at the Jan. 28 meeting move the borough closer to securing low-cost funds for a water-treatment project and adjust sewer rates that will affect resident bills; follow-up meetings and formal NJI Bank procurement steps were described as the next steps in the process.

The borough passed the related consent resolutions during the Jan. 28 meeting. The administrator said that once financing details are finalized, the borough expects to proceed with bidding and contracting steps for the Arrow Road treatment work.