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Council weighs borrowing, SRF and private financing as alternatives to steep near‑term rate hikes
Summary
Councilors and staff discussed tax anticipation notes, SRF loans, private bank lending and philanthropy to smooth revenue needs; staff said SRF has low discount but heavy compliance, and private/local loans could be considered if cost and timing are favorable.
Several councilors asked whether the city could borrow in the short term to smooth rate impacts instead of pushing larger increases onto ratepayers. Councilor Carlin suggested exploring tax anticipation notes or borrowing $10–12 million on the market to smooth five years of phased increases.
Rob Schultz said the usual route is the state's SRF (drinking‑water/state infrastructure loans), which offers discounted rates but comes with compliance and paperwork burdens; private or local bank loans and philanthropic models were identified as alternatives to evaluate, but staff stressed they would need detailed analysis of net cost and timing. He also said enterprise funds (water/sewer) are revenue‑backed and treated separately from the city's general 3% debt limit.
