The Mount Pleasant Village Board approved at its meeting Monday night borrowing nearly $14 million for a number of capital expenses.
Municipal bonds will pay for roads, public infrastructure at the Land and Lakes Business Park, a new fire truck, and incentives for the Land and Lakes development
“What’s precipitating the financing at this point in time is the developer agreement for the Land and Lakes phase 2,” said said Todd Taves, a senior municipal adviser with Ehlers Inc., which is underwriting the bonds.
The bonding is structured as two sets of bonds. The first being $9.16 million for public infrastructure at Land and Lakes, road improvements, and the firetruck. Then there is $4.54 million, which is part of the incentive package for Land and Lakes and is being borrowed to cover the balance of project.
It will take the village about 20 years to pay off the debt, at which time the total price tag with interest will be more than $18 million. Funds for the debt will be issued sometime in September and will be recouped in two ways.
The cost for infrastructure installation at the business park will be recouped through increment from the tax incremental district it sits in. Property owners with a home valued at $178,000 will see an additional $32 on their tax bill, but that amount will decline over time as the debt is paid down, according to village trustees.
The finance director Kay Maygar was not present at the meeting. But Trustee Gary Feest said she told him that the village could afford borrowing this much after he expressed concern to her.
Still, some trustees were hesitant.
“This is biting off a lot of, a lot of money here all at once,” said Trustee Jon Hansen.
Trustee Ken Otwaska recognized that it is a large sum for the village to borrow, but he was confident it was the right move.
“This is a big borrowing for this, but these roads, these particular roads they need to be done.”
Feest agreed saying that it was “a lot of money to borrow for the roads.”
But with the finance directors assurance, he said he was comfortable voting for approval of the bonds.