The Audubon School District, Tuesday evening, passed a Resolution directing the sale of approximately $9.11-million in General Obligation School and Refunding Bonds for the District’s HVAC system and other facility improvements. The 9.11-million includes $7.5-million for the voter approved Bond Referendum, plus $1.6-million in refunding 2013 series bonds.

Superintendent Eric Trager said when the District’s Financial Advisor Travis Squires from Piper/Sandler opened the bids and shared them with Trager and the Board Secretary Tuesday morning, Squires said the rates were “Historically low,” which Trager said made for “A good day.”

The reason he was happy, is because with five bidders, all were well below the estimated interest rate of 3.5% the District was expecting to pay, with the low bid from D.A. Davidson & Company from Denver, CO., coming in at 1.76%, which Squires said was virtually tied with the lowest bond rate they’ve seen in the State of Iowa. He said also, the last time bond rates were this low was in 2012, when they were at around 2.12-percent. After adjustments were made, the actual interest rate was 1.74-percent. The purchase price was $9, 326, 795.38.

The result was a savings on interest of $1.8-million. That means the anticipated 76-cent increase in the property tax asking will instead be reduced by about 35-cents. The District had originally said the $1.35 per 1,000 assessed valuation would be increased by 76-cents to $2.11/per thousand, but with the savings on interest, the actual increase amounts to about 30-to 35-cents/1,000. In addition, the District saves about $30,000 by redeeming the Outstanding General Obligation Refunding Bonds, Series 2013.

The next steps includes a series of Resolution at the next Board meeting that finalize the transactions. After that, the District will be working with a construction manager to determine a cash flow, and if there are any investment options for the remaining bond proceeds that the district would like to pursue.

In other business, the Audubon School Board, Tuesday, approved a recommendation from Mr. Trager to place a duplex property in Washington State on a real estate listing, since efforts to sell the property privately, have not met expectations. The duplex, which was bequeathed to the district in the will of an Audubon graduate, is valued at $205,000.