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Habersham County approves PNC loan to build animal control facility, pledges SPLOST repayment
Summary
The Habersham County Board of Commissioners unanimously accepted a PNC Bank bid to finance a new animal control facility through a 10‑year tax‑exempt installment sale (not to exceed $6,850,000) and authorized the chairman to execute closing documents; commissioners said repayment is expected from SPLOST/sales‑tax receipts, not the general fund.
Habersham County commissioners voted unanimously March 17 to accept PNC Bank's bid to finance construction of a new county animal control facility and authorized the chairman to sign all closing documents.
Christopher Holt, the county's financial adviser with Davenport, told the board that seven proposals were solicited and that PNC offered the lowest rate at 3.64% for a not‑to‑exceed par amount of $6,850,000 and a 10‑year amortization. "Given PNC's bid at 3.64%, the county was able to realize over $600,000 in reduced interest repayment compared with our 5% planning rate," Holt said in his presentation.
Holt said the recommended structure is an installment sale through the Association County Commissioners of Georgia (ACCG) bricks‑and‑mortar program; the facility would be owned by ACCG during construction and purchased by the county over the loan term. The proposed repayment schedule shows semiannual payments with annual principal totaling just over $800,000 per year on a fiscal‑year basis.
Interim County Manager Tim Sims said county leaders expect to repay the loan using SPLOST (special purpose local option sales tax) collections rather than drawing on the general fund. "That's the goal — not to impact the general fund, which then impacts local property taxes," Sims said.
The item followed a public hearing. Resident Roger Dale Green questioned enforcement practices and costs and asked who would pay. Green said he was concerned about recent contact with animal control and mentioned a figure of $8,000,000 in the public comment; county staff explained that financing is county borrowing and that sales‑tax receipts are expected to cover repayment.
Commissioners also asked whether local banks were given an opportunity to bid. Davenport staff said every lender in the county and surrounding counties was contacted; South State submitted a proposal but PNC's lower rate made it the recommended bidder.
The board first voted to accept PNC as the financing provider and then approved a resolution authorizing the chairman to execute the installment‑sale and closing documents. Both votes were unanimous. The county will move next to finalize closing documents and aims for an April 1 closing date if the parties proceed as planned.
