The city of Everett, Washington, sold $56 million in bonds to make improvements to its water and sewer system.
The bonds received a rating of AA+ from S&P Global Ratings. They mature between 2024 and 2048, with yields ranging from 2.85% to 4%.
“The rating reflects Everett’s broad and diverse service area economy, combined with an extremely robust financial performance, offset by management’s plan to nearly double its leverage position and the expected drawdown in unrestricted liquidity to fund the city’s large capital plan over the next few years,” said S&P Global Ratings credit analyst Alexandra Rozgonyi.
The issuance is part of a larger plan to improve the city’s water and sewer system. Over the next five years, the city expects to spend an average of $100 million a year on the system. While some of that investment will be financed by bonds, the system averages about $30 million in annual operating income, which could be used for capital improvements.
That investment is part of a larger capital improvement plan directed to upgrade the city’s public works. Over half of the money is to be invested in utilities such as the water and sewer system. In 2023, the capital improvement plan called for more than $100 million in investment, according to the city’s budget.
The city of Evertt has a population of 113,000 and is about 30 miles north of Seattle. The city’s economy has taken flight in recent years, increasing its net position by 50 percent over the past decade. Boeing is the city’s largest employer by a wide margin.
JP Morgan Securities LLC served as lead underwriter on the bond issuance.