Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson said this week that Detroit’s financial woes threaten the county’s triple-A bond rating.
The comments came as Detroit Mayor Dave Bing prepares to release a set of proposals in coming weeks for how the city will deal with its projected $300 million accumulated deficit. In the past Bing has mentioned that bankruptcy is an option. Receivership has also been floated as a possibility for the cash-strapped Detroit Public Schools.
“I’m sandwiched between Flint and Detroit,” Patterson was quoted as saying at a Tri-County Summit gathering of local officials last week. “If the schools or the city go into receivership, I’ll lose my triple-A bond rating. So I’m Dave Bing’s biggest fan. I’m rooting for Dave and I’m rooting for the Detroit Public Schools.”
Patterson told the audience that during a recent visit with credit analysts, the fate of Detroit was a main topic. “The word receivership ricochets like a bullet around Wall Street,” he said.
