Carpinteria Sanitary District Successfully Issues $6 million of Assessment Bonds

In a turbulent market, the Carpinteria Sanitary District successfully brought to market $6 million of non-rated tax-exempt assessment bonds at interest rates comparable to investment grade municipal bonds. The Sanitary District’s Assessment District No. 2007-1 will fund the installation of sewer transmission lines and other improvements needed to connect 152 parcels in three Carpinteria neighborhoods-- Rincon Point, Sandyland Cove and Sand Point Road--to the Sanitary District’s sewer treatment facility. The total project cost is estimated at $9.4 million and pre-payments of assessments by 70 property owners in the three neighborhoods will supplement the moneys raised from the assessment bonds.

“We are pleased with the outcome of the financing,” commented Carpinteria Sanitary District General Manager Craig Murray. “This project has been in the works for over a decade and now we can move forward to finalize the project design and begin construction. The sewer conversion will benefit the homeowners and the environment, and is expected to create jobs to help the local economy. We’re also expecting a grant from the State that will help offset a significant cost for the property owners in the three neighborhoods.”

“The bond sale brought a successful conclusion to a long financing process,” said Adam Bauer, Vice President with Fieldman Rolapp & Associates, the District’s financial advisor. “When the credit crunch hit last year, we saw a significant increase in interest rates. We’ve been tracking the market carefully and felt that we arrived at a good window to lock in rates.”

“The bonds were well received by investors. We worked with the Carpinteria Sanitary District on an active marketing program targeted to local investors and attracted over $17 million of orders with almost half coming from residents in the area. The bonds were priced at interest rates below 7%. These rates were well below an “A-“ rated issue in the market the same day,” added Jim Cervantes, Managing Director at Stone & Youngberg, the underwriter of the assessment bonds.

The Carpinteria Sanitary District is an independent special district founded in 1928 which provides wastewater collection and treatment and disposal services to the residents and businesses of the City of Carpinteria and the surrounding areas of the Carpinteria Valley. The District serves approximately 16,500 individuals and just approximately 4,100 accounts. The Assessment District No. 2007-1 bonds are secured by assessment payments made by certain property owners of that district and are not a direct obligation of the Carpinteria Sanitary District.

For more information, visit:

Carpinteria Sanitary District: www.carpsan.com

Fieldman Rolapp & Associates: www.fieldman.com

Stone & Youngberg: www.syllc.com