Long Term Capital & Financial Planning for Water and Wastewater Utilities

Mr. Burnett was born and raised in Southern Ontario, and now resides in Denver.  He is a graduate of the University of Waterloo where he earned an undergraduate degree in Economics and an Masters in Financial Economics from the University at Buffalo.  For the last 17 years, Mr. Burnett has been providing consulting services associated with the financial, strategic planning, management, of utility systems.  His professional experience encompasses a wide range of financial and management related issues within the utility industry.  He has assisted both private and public utility systems throughout the United States with a focus on the Rocky Mountain region and the western United States with projects such as:

• Utility Rate Studies (Water, Sewer, Reuse and Stormwater)
• Impact/Capacity Fee Studies
• Financial Feasibility Analyses
• Revenue Bond Issues
• Long Term Capital Funding Plans
• Utility Valuations
• Cost-of-Service Allocations
• Wholesale Customer Rates
• Water Conservation Structures and Elasticity Effect

Mr. Burnett has also made presentations associated with rates and impact fees to such organizations as the Rocky Mountain Section of AWWA, the Special District’s Association of Colorado, the Growth and Infrastructure Consortium and Government Finance Officers Association of Arizona, and is an active member of AWWA’s Rates and Charges Committee. 

Over the years, Mr. Burnett has worked for internationally recognized consulting firm ARCADIS.  He currently works at Willdan, where Mr. Burnett runs the company’s Denver financial services office. 

Ms. Hollis resides in Oviedo, Florida.  She is a graduate of the University of Central Florida where she earned an undergraduate degree in Accounting as well as a master’s in business administration.  For more than 25 years, Ms. Hollis has provided utility rate, financial, economic, and capital planning services for utility systems.  She has assisted both private and public utility systems throughout the United States with projects such as:

• Utility Rate Studies (Water, Sewer, Reuse, Stormwater, and Solid Waste)
• Impact/Capacity Fee Studies
• Non-Ad Valorem Assessment Programs
• Revenue Bond Issues
• Financial Feasibility Analyses and Long-Term Capital Funding Plans
• Utility Valuations, Divestitures, Mergers, and Acquisitions
• Equity Recapture Strategies
• Cost-of-Service Allocations
• Wholesale Customer Rates

Ms. Hollis has also made numerous presentations associated with user rates and capital funding to local governments, rating agencies such as Moody’s and Standard & Poor’s, as well as organizations including the Indiana Section of AWWA, the Growth and Infrastructure Consortium, and the South Carolina Rural Water Association.  Ms. Hollis is also a member of AWWA’s Committee that is developing a Manual on System Development Charges. 

Over the years, Ms. Hollis has worked for the nationally recognized consulting firms Tetra Tech, as well as smaller regional firms such as GAI Consultants and Hartman & Associates.  Currently working as a Principal Consultant for Willdan in their Orlando, Florida office, Ms. Hollis is a Certified Public Accountant and holds the Certified Valuation Analyst designation from the National Association of Certified Valuators and Analysts.

Mr. Cronan has seven years of experience within Willdan’s Financial Consulting Services group. His primary function is to support project managers and senior analysts with utility rate studies. He specializes in analysis for a variety of clients, including cities, water districts, and public utilities.  He has assisted both private and public utility systems throughout the United States with many in the California market.  His experience includes:

• Utility Rate Studies (Water, Sewer, Reuse and Stormwater)
• Impact/Capacity Fee Studies
• Financial Feasibility Analyses
• Proposition 218 Rate structures