The City will be doing a lighting and street reconstruction project in the East Billings Urban Renewal District (EBURD) to be financed with a Special Improvement District (SID) Bond and a Tax Increment Bond.  Streetlights will be installed on most of the streets from North 10th Street to North 22nd Street and Montana Avenue to 6th Avenue North.  In order to install these improvements, a Special Improvement District has been created. The cost of installation will  be assessed to all of the properties with frontage along the streets that receive streetlights.  This SID is in conjunction with a larger project which will reconstruct the streets and make improvements to the sanitary sewer and storm drains in this area.  The annual debt payments for these improvements will be paid from the tax increment funds from the District.  Two parameters resolutions have been submitted for approval to set the limits for the principal amounts, the interest rates and the maturity of the bonds.

City Council may:

• Approve, or;
• Disapprove the parameters resolutions and find another funding source for the projects.

The term of the SID bond will not exceed 15 years and the interest rate shall not exceed 5.50%.  The Tax Increment bond's interest rate will not exceed 5.70 % with a maturity of 20 years.

The actual interest rate will be determined at the time of the sale. 

Staff recommends that the City Council approve two resolutions authorizing the issuance of the bonds through negotiated sales and setting the bond parameters.