Caitlin Devitt

Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox last Saturday approved the $1.5 billion sale of the Detroit Medical Center to a for-profit Tennessee-based health care company. The deal awaits federal approval and is expected to close Dec. 31.

Federal and state environmental regulators have agreed to extend a deadline for Evansville to develop a plan to improve its sewer systems.

Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard last week announced that longtime financial analyst Jeff Spalding would take over as the city’s new controller.

CHICAGO — A new bond-issuing authority made up of the University of Nebraska and the city of Lincoln will take competitive bids Wednesday on nearly $100 million of recovery zone economic development bonds and Build America Bonds.

CHICAGO — Whiting, Ind., this week will issue $60 million of tax-exempt refunding bonds on behalf of BP Products North America Inc., which is in the midst of a $3.8 billion expansion of its Whiting-based oil refinery.

CHICAGO — Transit advocates in central Indiana plan to push forward with a high-profile regional transportation plan that features a $2.5 billion mass-transit expansion despite opposition from Republican leaders.

CHICAGO — Indianapolis would float $86 million of tax-increment financing bonds to finance construction of a new corporate campus for Eli Lilly and Co.— the pharmaceutical giant that is the city’s top private-sector employer — under a plan Mayor Greg Ballard will submit to the City-County Council next week.

Michigan Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop last week said lame-duck lawmakers will not act on a controversial plan to build a $1 billion, publicly owned bridge over the Detroit River.

Moody’s Investors Service affirmed its underlying Aa3 on the Rockford School District but revised the outlook to negative due to a pressured fiscal position.

Fitch Ratings downgraded to junk its rating on $45.1 million of economic development revenue refunding and improvement bonds issued by the city of Anderson for Anderson University.

Moody's Investors Service last week boosted its outlook to stable from negative on the Cleveland Clinic Health System in part because the prestigious system has scaled back some of its ambitious capital program.

Scaling down local government and expanding public-private partnerships for infrastructure are among Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels top priorities for the upcoming legislative session, the governor said Thursday morning at a press conference.

CHICAGO — Indiana’s Purdue University will price $171 million of new-money and refunding bonds Thursday, and follow the sale with a $117 million borrowing in the next few weeks that will mark its fourth trip to market this year.

CHICAGO — The Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District, which serves the Cleveland area, Thursday will sell $338.3 million of Build America Bonds in its largest-ever deal.

KnowledgeFunding Ohio Inc., a nonprofit group that issues tax-exempt bonds and buys student loans, has launched a new website for bondholders.

Detroit will receive $21.5 million in a mix of grants and loans to invest in the development of Woodward Corridor, one of its main thoroughfares.

The Cook County Health and Hospital System plans to issue up to $200 million of debt over the next five years to finance a new capital plan.

CHICAGO — The Omaha Public Power District will hit the market Thursday with $120 million of taxable Build America Bonds while delaying a $125 million refunding issue amid lower-than-expected market savings.

CHICAGO — The Ohio Turnpike Commission will refund $130.3 million of bonds Monday to achieve savings of nearly $10 million over the life of the debt.

CHICAGO — The election of a new administration to rule Cook County presents a rare chance to overhaul the county’s troubled fiscal policies and government structure, a Chicago-based watchdog group says in a new report.