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Habersham County approves PNC financing for new animal-control facility
Summary
The Habersham County Commission accepted a PNC Bank proposal to finance construction of a new county animal-control facility using an ACCG installment sale; commissioners approved related closing documents. The county intends to repay the loan with SPLOST (sales tax) receipts.
Habersham County commissioners voted unanimously on March 17 to accept a 3.64% financing proposal from PNC Bank to fund construction of a new county animal-control facility and authorized the county chairman to sign the closing documents.
The vote follows a public hearing on the project’s financing and a presentation from Davenport financial advisors and county bond counsel. Christopher Holt of Davenport told commissioners the county received seven proposals and PNC’s 3.64% bid was the lowest; Davenport recommended a 10-year amortization and the county reserved the right to prepay the loan if additional SPLOST receipts allowed earlier payoff.
The financing will be structured as a tax-exempt installment sale through the Association County Commissioners of Georgia (ACCG) bricks-and-mortar program, with PNC providing the loan. Jim Woodward, bond counsel, explained that ACCG’s structure is commonly used across Georgia and that the county will buy the facility over time from ACCG and then fully own it when payments are complete.
During the public hearing resident Roger Dale questioned who would pay for the project. Interim County Manager Tim Sims said the county expects to use excess SPLOST (special-purpose local-option sales tax) collections — not the general fund — to repay the installment sale and noted some SPLOST dollars already are earmarked for other projects.
Davenport’s repayment schedule presented to the commission showed level annual debt service of roughly $800,000 per fiscal year under the 3.64% structure; Davenport estimated the lower rate produced about $600,000 in interest savings compared with a 5% planning rate.
Commissioners first approved a motion accepting PNC’s proposal, then approved a separate resolution authorizing the chairman to execute all documents needed to close the installment sale agreement and related financing documents. Both measures passed unanimously.
County staff and Davenport said closing documents were targeted for early April to allow construction to proceed on the county’s SPLOST-funded animal-control project.
