Midwest

CHICAGO — Principal and interest on $14.5 million of bonds issued in 2002 for a Joliet Junior College housing project in Illinois is now due, after bondholders frustrated with the project’s failure to make timely interest payments since 2005 triggered the payment-acceleration provision in the bond indenture last week.

CHICAGO — Fitch Ratings late Monday downgraded Illinois’ general obligation rating one notch to A-minus and warned of possible further action by leaving the state’s credit on negative watch ahead of $1.3 billion of short- and long-term GO issuance in three deals over the coming weeks.

CHICAGO — Detroit-based Miller, Canfield, Paddock and Stone PLC, Michigan’s top bond counsel firm, has tapped long-time public finance attorney Amanda Van Dusen to lead the public finance group.

Triple-A rated Columbus, Ohio, saved around $23 million over 20 years by issuing $192 million of Build America Bonds instead of traditional tax-exempt debt last November, the city’s longtime auditor estimated.

CHICAGO — Cook County, Ill.’s plan to issue $332 million of new-money debt advanced last week after a key board committee signed off on the borrowing.

CHICAGO — Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn Thursday said he is hoping rating agencies look favorably on pension reform legislation approved this week as the state seeks to fend off any further downgrades and improve its market image with three sales of $1.3 billion of general obligation bonds planned over the next month.

The office of the Wisconsin insurance commissioner ordered troubled bond guarantor Ambac Assurance Corp. to deposit the more toxic holdings of its insured portfolio into a newly-created account that the office will administer.

CHICAGO — The Indianapolis market will gain six new public finance attorneys following the merger this month between Cleveland, Ohio-based law firm Benesch Friedlander Coplan & Aronoff LLP and longtime local firm Dann Pecar Newman & Kleiman PC.

CHICAGO — Depfa Bank Plc has formally demanded repayment of its $165 million loan to five Wisconsin school districts, calling on them to make good on their moral obligation pledge to repay the funds used to establish trusts to help pay other post-employment benefit liabilities.

CHICAGO — Legislation that would allow Illinois’ eight public universities to issue short-term debt to manage through the state’s chronic payment delays ­advanced this week towards a House floor vote.