The Ridgefield School District has taken another step toward building its first new school in 40-plus years.
On Wednesday, the district announced it had sold bonds to finance the $77,965,000 local share of the $98.5 million for the construction of various projects, including a new fifth-through-eighth-grade campus expected to open in time for the 2018-2019 school year.
The district's bond measure, which passed with 68.82 percent of the vote in February, will also fund an expansion at Ridgefield High School, allowing the district to construct a new building with rooms for science, special education, fine arts, general education and a library/media center.
Bond money will also provide security upgrades to Union Ridge and South Ridge elementary schools. The city will pay for an outdoor sports complex next to the new campus.
The overall cost of the 20-year financing was 3.32 percent, according to a release from the district.
"Interest rates on these types of bonds are near historic lows," Ridgefield School District Superintendent Nathan McCann said in a release. "This is a good time to borrow at low rates to complete these important projects for the community."
The district saved roughly $180,000 in total debt service when compared with initial interest rates, thanks to a stable bond market, according to the release.
The bonds were sold through a public offering led by Piper Jaffray & Co., a securities firm based in Portland, and were purchased by investors -- mostly from professional money managers, banks and insurance companies -- from around the country.
The district received strong interest from investors, thanks to its Aa3 credit rating from Moody's Investors Services. In their recent report, Moody's cited the district's conservative budgetary management and the above-average wealth levels of district residents as credit strengths, according to the release. The district also benefited from receiving the state's rating of Aa1 on the bonds by its participation in the Washington School Bond Guarantee Program, which provides credit enhancement to voter-approved general obligation bonds issued by school districts.
