CHAMPAIGN – The City of Champaign recently completed the refinancing of its 2010 bonds, which will save the City a total of $2,070,105 in interest over the next ten years. The City’s excellent credit rating helped it achieve a low net interest cost on the new refinancing bonds of 1.9%. The City of Champaign holds triple-A bond ratings from Moody’s Investors Services and Fitch Ratings; the only downstate municipality to achieve this highest rating.
The savings achieved by the refinancing were higher than anticipated due to interest rate reductions in recent months and the excellent work of the City’s underwriters Siebert, Williams, Shank & Co, a majority minority- and woman-owned investment firm, in marketing and selling the City’s bonds.
According to Finance Director Kay Nees, “Just like homeowners can refinance their mortgages when interest rates drop, City staff proactively watches the financial markets in order to maximize opportunities to save money. Thanks to the City of Champaign’s long history of fiscal responsibility and its triple-A bond rating, the City was able to refinance its bonds and save more than two million dollars in interest that can be used for other City projects.”
The 2010 bonds were originally issued to pay for stormwater drainage improvements. The savings from refinancing the bonds will go towards funding current and future City stormwater drainage projects.