AWWA ACE54336

Portsmouth is a historic seaport city located in the southeastern area of Virginia known as Hampton Roads. Portsmouth's water utility serves 140,000 people in the cities of Portsmouth, Chesapeake and Suffolk through a combination retail service and bulk sales contracts. Like many cities, Portsmouth's approach to its water infrastructure had been generational. Eachsucceeding generation had focused on expanding the water system outward from the city core into newly developing areas with little emphasis placed on the maintenance and renewal of mains left behind. Portions of Portsmouth's water infrastructure date back to the late 1800s. Over a hundred years later, the City faced a variety of challenges making maintenance and replacement of its aging water infrastructure imperative. In particular, redevelopment of existing property from residential to commercial and industrial uses placed additional stresses on the City's infrastructure, underscoring the need for comprehensive infrastructure revitalization. At the same time, the City confronted the challenges of a limited tax base for revenue generation, a declining population, and loss of jobs in the US Navy installations located in its service area. To respond to these issues, in 1996, the City of Portsmouth initiated a strategic financial planning process for its Department of Public Utilities (DPU). The process was intended to address a number of strategic issues including: consistency with overall City goals and plans; the need for a stable funding source; rehabilitation needs; regulatory drivers; the need for a longer-term financial forecasting perspective; long-term rate considerations; competitiveness; and, tools for ongoing planning. Includes figures, appendix.

Product Details

Edition:

Vol. - No.

Published:

06/01/2001

Number of Pages:

21

File Size:

1 file , 560 KB