Wastewater Treatment Facility Upgrade Project Grant

Airport Parkway Wastewater Treatment Facility Upgrade Project Grant

In 2012 the City completed a $30 million upgrade and expansion project at its largest wastewater treatment facility, located on Airport Parkway. To aid in the funding of this project, the City borrowed over $20 million from the State of Vermont’s Revolving Loan Fund. At that time, the City was also anticipating another $5 million grant to help fund the project, a grant that would not have to be paid back. The City was awarded the grant, but that State grant program was out of funds and our total loan amount was not reduced.

Subsequently a few years later, City staff learned the grant program was refunded. Staff began the process of retroactively reapplying for the grant it had been awarded years earlier, but didn’t receive. After about four years of this back-and-forth process, the City was eventually awarded the $4.5 million grant. As a result, our annual debt payment to the state for the project’s main $20M loan was refinanced and reduced by almost $400,000 for the remainder of the loan, 12 years.


Savings pig SAVING TAXPAYER DOLLARS
When you see this savings pig, it indicates that this project resulted in saving taxpayer dollars.