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Bond commission approves local financing for St. Tammany Lakeshore Villages, West Baton Rouge schools and Lafayette public trust projects
Summary
The State Bond Commission approved three local financing requests: special assessment revenue bonds for a St. Tammany development, revenue bonds for West Baton Rouge Parish School Board capital improvements, and Lafayette Public Trust taxable revenue bonds for downtown revitalization and park improvements.
The State Bond Commission on Feb. 20 approved three local financing requests presented in separate agenda sections.
Items 44 and 45 were approved together. Item 44 is a request from the St. Tammany Parish Lakeshore Villages Master Community Development District for special-assessment revenue bonds described in meeting materials as "not exceeding 2.3" (figure stated in the packet; units were not specified in the transcript). Proceeds were described as intended to purchase roughly 12 acres of land from the St. Tammany Parish School Board for development of public-safety facilities, a community event building and indoor recreational facilities. Staff said the bonds would be a limited obligation of the district, payable from special assessments on land in the district and, until lots sell, would be a liability of the developer.
Item 45 was a request from the West Baton Rouge Parish School Board for revenue bonds not exceeding $32.5 million to fund capital improvements. Meeting staff said project sources would include $7.5 million from the school board; staff recommended approval after technical review.
Item 48, presented under public trust financing, was a request by the Lafayette Public Trust Financing Authority for taxable revenue bonds not exceeding $4.5 million. The authority requested approval to finance capital projects intended to promote downtown economic revitalization, improvements to properties it owns and improvements to a community park. Staff recommended approval after finding the application met technical requirements.
Representative Johnson moved approval of items 44 and 45; President Henry seconded. The items were approved without recorded objection. Representative Johnson moved approval of item 48; President Henry seconded and the item was approved.
Why it matters: The approved financings would enable local public-safety, recreational and school capital projects, and a downtown revitalization effort in Lafayette. Staff presentations emphasized that the applications met the commission's technical requirements. The commission noted the bonds for the development district would ultimately be repaid from assessments on sold lots and would be a developer liability until lots are sold.
