About

Henrico is enhancing its focus on environmental sustainability by tapping residents to help shape policies and guide initiatives, which will include the county’s first official strategy for addressing the effects of climate change.

The Board of Supervisors on Tuesday appointed the first permanent members of the Sustainability and Resilience Advisory Committee (SRAC). The panel has 10 members – two from each magisterial district – who will serve as formal advisors and provide a community perspective on issues related to environmental sustainability, resilience and strategies for adapting to climate change. The county’s Sustainability Division is providing staff support to the committee.

The idea for SRAC grew from discussions about climate change and the county’s plan to develop a Climate Action & Adaptation Strategy. That project is getting underway and will build on work done through PlanRVA to create the region’s Priority Climate Action Plan and Comprehensive Climate Action Plan. The Board of Supervisors established SRAC in August with temporary appointees from the county’s staff.

“The Climate Action & Adaption Strategy will include recommendations for action, and SRAC will be instrumental in advising the process through implementation,” said Samantha Hudson, director of the Sustainability Division. “SRAC also will advise the county on related topics, including energy, preservation of greenspace and more.”

SRAC will complement the work of two other county groups focused on the environment. Henrico’s Environmental Action Resource Team (HEART) includes representatives from various departments that collaborate on projects and engage with the community and with students through its youth council. Keep Henrico Beautiful, led by community members appointed by the Board of Supervisors, focuses on litter prevention, recycling and education.

SRAC will meet at 6 p.m. on the first Wednesday of every other month, beginning Feb. 4. Meetings will be held in the County Manager’s Conference Room on the third floor of the Administration Building at the Henrico County Government Center, 4301 E. Parham Road. The committee’s members are Marilee Tretina and Lynne Yurchak, of the Brookland District; Elizabeth “Beth” Kreydatus and Lisa Washington, of the Fairfield District; Mark Deutsch and Kim Jemaine, of the Three Chopt District; Danna Flaherty and Eric Haley, of the Tuckahoe District; and Becky Lakin and Elliot Reed, of the Varina District.

Since opening in mid-February, Bungalow City Firehouse 23 has enhanced fire protection and emergency medical response to areas of eastern Henrico. On Oct. 16, officials celebrated the station and its new fire engine with a grand opening and ribbon-cutting event that included a traditional fire engine push-in ceremony.

“It’s already proven its worth,” Varina District Supervisor Tyrone E. Nelson said of the 14,000-square-foot station. “It has significantly reduced the call volume for other stations in the area and eventually will be home to a second ladder truck serving eastern Henrico.”

Located at 5618 Nine Mile Road, Firehouse 23 is named after its surrounding neighborhood of modest bungalow houses dating to the 1920s. Fire Chief Jackson Baynard has called it the “community’s firehouse.”

“It’s tight-knit and resilient – a thriving community to this day,” Nelson said of Bungalow City. “So, the name has deep roots, and it’s appropriate the fire station’s title reflects the community which it serves.”

The $14.5 million station includes three drive-thru bays, individual bunk rooms, a kitchen, a fitness room and a dayroom. It’s home to an engine, medic unit and BLS (basic life support) ambulance. Henrico voters approved funding for the facility through the 2016 bond referendum.

About 86% of the county’s voters endorsed the bond issuance for fire stations and related facilities, County Manager John Vithoulkas said.

“The station reiterates the county’s commitment to safeguarding the residents and businesses of our county and ensuring that every call for help is met with promptness and professionalism – and underscore, because of this Board of Supervisors – without a bill to the resident,” he said.

Henrico Public Relations, For Immediate Release

Henrico becomes first to earn ‘quadruple AAA’ status for water, sewer bonds

Agencies recently also gave top ratings for Henrico’s general obligation bonds

Henrico County’s AAA ratings for water and sewer revenue bonds – the highest endorsement of its financial management and creditworthiness – have been reaffirmed by independent rating agencies, which now include a fourth company.

As a result, Henrico is the first public utility in the nation to hold “quadruple AAA” status for water and sewer revenue bonds. That means it has received the top ratings from all four of the main municipal rating agencies: S&P Global Ratings, Moody’s Investors Service, Fitch Ratings and Kroll Bond Rating Agency. In August, Henrico became the third county in the nation to receive AAA ratings for general obligation bonds from the four agencies.

“This elite bond-rating status – ‘quadruple AAA’ – underscores Henrico County’s commitment to excellence in fiscal management and leadership in all aspects of governance,” said Board of Supervisors Chair Dan J. Schmitt, of the Brookland District. “These ratings – first with general obligation bonds and now with water and sewer revenue bonds – represent far more than accolades. They translate into lower interest rates and ultimately millions of dollars in savings for our taxpayers as we continue to make strategic investments in facilities and infrastructure that support the county’s high quality of life. These ratings will help us provide tremendous value as we improve and modernize our public utilities system, making it stronger, with enhanced redundancies and resiliency, for all our customers.”

In announcing Henrico’s “quadruple AAA” status for water and sewer revenue bonds, officials noted that AAA status for revenue bonds can be exceptionally difficult to earn because they are backed by a limited funding source, primarily sales of water and sewer service to customers. By comparison, general obligation bonds are supported by a much broader set of funding sources. For Henrico and other localities, that includes real estate and personal property taxes.

Officials also used the news conference at the Water Treatment Facility to provide an overview of its plans to issue $125 million in water and sewer revenue bonds. Among other investments, the bonds will provide initial funding for a $300 million cross-county distribution line that will allow more areas of Henrico to be served by the Water Treatment Facility on Three Chopt Road. Some portions of central and eastern Henrico are currently served exclusively by the city of Richmond’s water treatment plant, under a 1994 water-purchase agreement between the county and city. Those areas were impacted early this year when a power outage knocked the city’s treatment plant offline for several days.

For water and sewer revenue bonds, Henrico became “triple AAA” for water and sewer bonds in 2019, when Moody’s joined the other major rating agencies in assigning an AAA rating to the county. Now, it’s “quadruple AAA,” with newcomer Kroll providing its top assessment of the county’s creditworthiness. S&P Global, Moody’s, Fitch and Kroll have all assigned their ratings of Henrico with a “stable” outlook.

In a summary of its findings, Kroll noted that Henrico’s utilities system continues to see steady growth, with more than 100,000 water customers and nearly that many sewer customers. The customer base also remains diverse, with the 10 largest customers accounting for only 4.1% of total operating revenues.

“The long-term rating reflects the … [system’s] strong financial performance, rate setting autonomy, and provision of highly essential services to a growing service area with favorable demographics,” Kroll said in its rating report. “The service area is characterized by strong per capita income and low unemployment levels relative to the Commonwealth of Virginia.”

Contact: Bentley P. Chan

Director

Henrico County Department of Public Utilities

804-501-4280, bentley.chan@henrico.gov