Published March 25 2015
Standards and Poor's, along with Moody's, the nation's leading bond rating agencies, have reaffirmed Bellevue's reliable financial management by assigning the city their top ratings of AAA and Aaa, respectively.
The result of a comprehensive analysis of the city's credit worthiness, the ratings are the highest available to an organization and a signal to potential bond buyers about the level of risk related to their investment. Because of the high ratings, the city will pay lower interest rates on money it borrows for important capital projects.
"We're extremely pleased that the top bond rating companies have reaffirmed the city's careful oversight on behalf of the public," said Finance Director Jan Hawn. "It's a tip of the hat to the fiscal stewardship of our City Council and city staff."
The bond rating agencies issued their ratings at this time because Bellevue plans to use the bond sale to help finance major capital projects the council approved in December as part of its seven-year capital budget. Examples include Northeast Spring Boulevard (Zone 1), Meydenbauer Bay Park Phase I, Newport Way sidewalks, improvements to the Meydenbauer Convention Center and work related to the East Link light rail project. The city also will refinance debt from 2006 and 2008 to take advantage of current lower interest rates.
The city expects to issue roughly $96 million worth of long-term debt at the end of this month. The exact interest rate will be determined at the time of the bond sale.