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Infrastructure Bank Finances $30 Million in Drinking Water Projects

The Infrastructure Bank recently announced over $30 million in below-market-rate financing through its Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF) for drinking water projects in Providence, Smithfield, Cumberland, and Newport. This financing will support a range of drinking water projects such as water main rehabilitation, fire hydrant installation, and water tank upgrades. “There is no greater natural resource than water,” said Jeffrey R. Diehl, Executive Director and CEO of Rhode Island Infrastructure Bank. “The Infrastructure Bank is proud to support local communities and drinking water systems as they take bold action to ensure that public drinking water remains safe and reliable for their residents and ratepayers.” By financing these projects through Infrastructure Bank loan programs, the borrowers are expected to save over $10.9 million in lifetime debt-service payments compared to if they had borrowed independently from banks or the bond market. Learn more

C-PACE Gives a Boost to Rhode Island’s Hospitality Sector As an ideal alternative to equity or mezzanine debt within a development capital stack, Commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy (C-PACE) financing has proven to be a useful tool for new construction projects. C-PACE’s ability to displace, reduce or supplement mezzanine financing has made the program popular in the hospitality sector, an industry that has benefited from nearly $300 million in financing from C-PACE programs across the U.S. over the last ten years. In his latest NEREJ feature, Infrastructure Bank CEO Jeffrey R. Diehl explains how the Preserve Club in Richmond and the Aloft Hotel in Providence are utilizing C-PACE financing to fund new construction activities, while reducing each project’s overall cost of capital. Learn more.

The 2020 Municipal Resilience Program Kicks-Off in Little Compton and Bristol The Infrastructure Bank, in partnership with The Nature Conservancy, launched the 2020 Municipal Resilience Program with Community Resilience Building workshops in both Bristol and Little Compton. The collaborative workshops have been adapted from an in-person format to conducted remotely. The first two workshops engaged over 50 municipal leaders and identified critical resilience projects, policies, and programs to better prepare the towns for a changing climate. Workshops with seven additional cities and towns will be delivered over the next few months.    “Collaborating with Rhode Island municipalities to identify critical investments that help prepare for climate change is more important than ever,” said Jeffrey R. Diehl, CEO of Rhode Island Infrastructure Bank. “We are proud of the partnership with The Nature Conservancy to deliver this program and have been impressed by the creativity and innovation to create the new online workshop format.”

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