Thursday, March 16, 2023

School district completes third sale of bonds

The third and final sale in the series of School Building and Site Bonds has been completed by the Wayne Westland Community Schools district.

The $36,760,000 bond sale was authorized by the voters of the school district in November of 2018. The final sale  represents one third of the series which will be used for remodeling, equipping, re-equipping, furnishing and re-furnishing school buildings, athletic fields and other facilities; acquiring and installing instructional technology equipment and infrastructure in school buildings and other facilities;

construction of additions to existing school buildings and athletic field houses at both high school sites; preparing, developing and improving sites at school buildings, playgrounds, athletic fields and other facilities and the purchase of school buses, and paying the costs of issuing the bonds.

District officials worked with consultants from Baker Tilly Municipal Advisors, LLC in preparing the sale, including the credit quality of the district by S&P Global Ratings, a business unit of Standard and Poor's Financial Services LLC. Auditors assigned the school district a rating of “A” with a stable outlook, citing large and mostly developed tax base in the district with residential incomes considered adequate; consistent surpluses, resulting in reserves above 20 percent and moderate debt levels. The bonds received an enhanced long-term rating of “AA” credited in part to the district participation in the Michigan School Bond Qualification and Loan Program.

“We are committed to being good financial stewards of the bonds entrusted to us by our voters. This fiscal responsibility and the school improvements that will be completed due to the bond will benefit the district and our entire community,” said Dr. John Dignan, superintendent of the Wayne Westland district.

The bonds were sold at an interest rate of 4.45 percent with a final maturity of 2046, a repayment term of approximately 24 years, according to information provided by the school district.