EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
New Jersey American Water is the largest water and wastewater service provider in the state, and we take extraordinary pride in providing solutions for communities to address their water and wastewater challenges. Customers are at the center of everything we do - from delivering safe, reliable, and affordable water and wastewater service to providing excellent customer service. Thank you for the opportunity to present our $16.5 million commitment to the Borough's wastewater system and expand our partnership to include wastewater service in the Borough.
New Jersey American Water, a subsidiary of American Water (NYSE: AWK), is the largest investor-owned water and wastewater utility in the state, providing high-quality, reliable water and/or wastewater service to approximately 2.8 million people in 190 communities. American Water calls New Jersey “home” with our Corporate Headquarters located in Camden, and we are committed to serving our customers and making the communities we serve stronger and more resilient.
New Jersey American Water is an industry leader in achieving environmental compliance, providing solutions for water and wastewater challenges, and investing in necessary capital improvements to strengthen communities’ infrastructure. We have the experienced management and operations team necessary to provide safe, reliable, and resilient water and wastewater service to Borough customers, and we are uniquely positioned to own and operate the Borough’s wastewater system given our local presence as the water service provider in your community for almost a century, with roots dating back to the 1930s.
The many benefits the Borough would see from New Jersey American Water’s $16.5 million commitment include:
- Cash payment of $7 million upon closing that the Borough can use to defease all debt associated with the wastewater utility, as well as a portion of the Borough’s outstanding debt.
- Capital investment commitment of $9.5 million in the first 10 years in the wastewater collection system to help stabilize and improve the Borough’s aging wastewater system.
- Short-term and long-term rate stability with adoption and hold of the Borough’s existing wastewater rates for two years, then a three percent annual increase in the following three years, followed by a four percent annual increase in years six and seven. As a regulated utility, we work closely with the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (NJBPU) to set reasonable rates.
- Operational responsibility relief allowing the Borough to focus on other priorities.
Water and wastewater service is ALL we do. You can be confident that in transferring operational and capital investment responsibilities for your wastewater system to New Jersey American Water, you will expand your partnership with the state’s leading and largest provider of clean, reliable service that meets or surpasses state and federal standards with the technical experience and financial resources to operate in the 21st century.
Each and every day, New Jersey American Water employees KEEP LIFE FLOWING by providing water and wastewater service to our customers. It is a privilege to serve our customers and we hope the Borough will extend to us that same privilege we have as your water service provider to wastewater service. Thank you for your consideration.