Columbus, Ohio, issued $469.8 million in bonds to finance various capital projects and refund previously issued securities.
Across five series, the city sold $377.7 million in tax-exempt bonds and $92.1 million in tax-exempt bonds. The tax-exempt bonds mature between 2025 and 2044, yielding between 2.79% and 3.68%. The taxable bonds mature between 2025 and 2041, yielding between 4.642% and 5.247%. The securities received a rating of AAA from Fitch Ratings, Aaa from Moody’s Investors Service, and AAA from S&P Global Ratings.
The rating “reflects the city’s strong population growth, high midrange budgetary flexibility, ‘aaa’ financial resilience and weak long-term liability burden,” Fitch analysts wrote.
The city will use most of the bond proceeds, some $408.2 million, to fund capital expenditures. These include affordable housing initiatives and improvements to infrastructure and parks. The largest outlay, $160.3 million, will support upgrades to transportation and trash collection. The remainder of the issuance proceeds will refund bonds Columbus sold in 2014.
Columbus is Ohio’s capital and its most populous city. The bonds are general obligations of the city, backed by its full faith and credit.
J.P. Morgan Securities LLC served as lead underwriter on the issuance, purchasing the bonds for $513.6 million. The price reflected a premium of about $40 million. PFM Financial Advisors LLC acted as municipal advisor.