The Trust for the Cultural Resources of the City of New York plans to price $112.5 million of revenue bonds to finance renovations at the New York Aquarium in Brooklyn and the Bronx Zoo on Wednesday.
The Wildlife Conservation Society operates both facilities.
The trust, a public benefit corporation authorized to issue debt for not-for-profit cultural institutions, approved the funding on Wednesday. A source on Friday afternoon said officials were monitoring Hurricane Sandy as it approached the Northeast but were still expecting to go ahead with the sale.
Proceeds will also be used to refund some Series 2004 revenue bonds, the size of the refunding component to be determined. Maturities will run from 2022 to 2033.
Goldman, Sachs & Co. is the lead manager.
Roughly $42 million in proceeds will offset the costs of a new, 57,500-square-foot building housing shark and other exhibits as part of the Ocean Wonders: Sharks! Project, part of a public-private initiative Mayor Michael Bloomberg and the society announced for the New York Aquarium in 2009, as part of redevelopment in Coney Island.
Officials expect the new building, formally called the Marine Propagation Center, to house 40 sharks and other species of fish and invertebrates.
New York City has already committed $106 million to fund the expansion.
The second page of the preliminary official statement, otherwise a grey document filled with boilerplate legal wording, features a large photo of "Shredder," a sand tiger shark at the aquarium.
Bond proceeds will also pay for deferred maintenance at the zoo, including construction and renovation of exhibits and animal holding facilities. Officially called Bronx Zoo Renaissance II, the project calls for infrastructure improvements to Jungleworld, the Reptile House and the World of Birds, and renovations to the children's zoo.
The plan calls for $59 million in spending overall through 2017, $42 million of which will be funded by city appropriations, secured private sources and some of the Series 2012 bonds. The society expects private and future city support to cover the remainder.
"We're really excited to be able to do the second phase of the Bronx Zoo reconstruction and turn our attention to the aquarium, which is the centerpiece of the Coney Island revitalization plan," Patricia Calabrese, the society's chief financial officer, said in an interview.
Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP is bond counsel. Hawkins Delafield & Wood LLP is representing the underwriters. Oct. 19: Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler is representing the Wildlife Conservation Society and Bryant Rabbino LLP is representing the trust.
Prager & Co. LLC is the financial advisor.
The society began in 1895 as the New York Zoological Society. It also operates the Central Park, Queens, and Prospect Park (Brooklyn) zoos.
