Mayor’s Task Force Solution Fixes Water Lines at No Cost to Citizens

Published on March 30, 2022

“The failure rate of our water line infrastructure has been a hot topic for many years,” said Mayor Norman Larkey Sr. “When I became mayor, I created a Mayor’s Task Force on Water Infrastructure to find a creative and affordable solution to replace our failing water line infrastructure with little to no cost to our citizens.”

The members of the task force on water infrastructure include Larkey, Councilmembers Angela Kraft, Dave Clark and Allyson Lawson, and community members Wanda Thompson, Stephanie Davidson, Tim Williams and Cindy Crate. They held their first meeting in August 2021, with the purpose of finding a way to fund the replacement of Belton’s water line infrastructure failures.

“Our goal was to find a solution that would have little to no additional cost to citizens and we did just that!” said Larkey. “Questions 2 and 3 on the April 5th ballot work together to address water line issues. If both are approved by voters, there will be no debt service rate increase for the replacement of our failing water line infrastructure.”

After extensive research and discussion, the task force proposed $60 million in revenue bonds to pay for the replacement of the failing water lines in just five years, and the extension of the existing ½ cent capital improvement sales tax to pay the principal and interest on those revenue bonds. City council approved their recommendation.

“If passed, these two ballot questions will allow us to keep water costs down for our residents and families and replace our failing water line infrastructure in five years,” said Larkey.

Click here to learn more about all four of Belton’s ballot questions. Make sure to get out and vote on April 5th, 2022.