Pitkin County outlines schedule for airport, landfill and joint‑dispatch financings

Pitkin County commissioners were briefed Dec. 2 on the timing and structure of three major borrowing plans that staff expect to bring to the board in 2026: Aspen‑Pitkin County Airport revenue bonds, bonds for a landfill expansion and a certificate of participation (COP) to help finance a regional joint dispatch center.

Robin Moore, municipal adviser with Piper Sandler, told commissioners the airport financing is the most complex and furthest advanced in planning. Voters approved a ballot question that allows the county to issue up to $340,000,000 of airport revenue bonds; Moore said the financing will likely combine revenue bonds, grants, passenger facility and customer facility charges, and possibly some fund‑balance. Recondo was retained to complete a feasibility study that will inform revenues, expenses and the bond structure; Moore said that study is a critical input before the county moves to underwriting and rating discussions.

Moore said typical public bond sales require three to four months to prepare — compiling a plan, drafting official statements, pre‑marketing and a broker order period — but the county will sequence issuance so grants and internal cash are considered first. County staff (Anne Driggers, CFAO, and Liz Woods, finance director/treasurer/public trustee) and Moore emphasized that if federal grants materialize before pricing, the county can reduce the amount of bonds sold. Board members pressed staff about the degree of assurance the FAA or other federal programs provide; staff said mechanisms such as letters of intent or multi‑year grant assurances are being researched to protect bond repayment plans that rely on grant funding.

The landfill expansion is the most immediate transaction. Moore said the county ran an underwriting RFP, selected Stifel as underwriter and is preparing the bond resolution, offering documents and a rating presentation to Standard & Poor’s. Those materials are scheduled to be in the Dec. 17 packet for first reading; Moore estimated a pricing window in early February and a closing in February–March 2026. She noted the election that authorized the solid waste financing included a maximum par amount ($22,000,000) and an interest‑rate parameter (5.75% maximum); recent market runs showed interest assumptions of about 4.35%, well within those voter‑approved limits.

The planned financing for the joint dispatch center is expected to use a COP, an annually appropriated lease‑purchase structure commonly used by Colorado local governments. Moore said the county’s share of the project is just over $8 million; because COP obligations are subject to annual appropriation, investors typically require a pledged asset as security. County bond counsel is working to pledge the second floor of the facility as the asset under the indenture while the team continues to evaluate term options (20–30 years) or a direct bank negotiation.

Moore and staff also reviewed municipal market context: tax‑exempt municipal bonds still enjoy broad market acceptance, but federal discussions about tax‑exempt status occasionally surface and are monitored because any federal change could alter borrowing costs nationwide. Moore characterized Pitkin County as a strong credit that should be well received by investors and said staff will return with recommended underwriting teams, draft documents and recommended calendar dates for formal actions.

Next steps: staff said a reimbursement resolution for the dispatch center (allowing the county to use future bond proceeds to reimburse prior expenditures) will appear on the board agenda the next day, and enterprise‑fund codification and solid‑waste bond documents will be on the Dec. 17 agenda for first reading.