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Friday, March 16, 2018
New middle school drops city’s bond rating
A Night to Remember
By Christopher Roberson
T
Matthew Stewart, Shai Oliva and Jason Canvel are shown at the Peabody High School Junior Prom, held on March 9 at the Danversport Yacht Club. See more photo highlights on page 4. (Advocate Photos By Christopher Roberson)
he cost of building the new $92 million Higgins Middle School recently caught up with the city’s bond rating, causing it to fall from Aa1 to Aa2. Within the total cost, the city contributed $47 million with the balance being funded by the Massachusetts School Building Authority. Aa2 is the third highest rating on the scale used by Moody’s Investors Services. Mayor Edward Bettencourt said he is not overly concerned with the slight decrease; he actually saw it coming.“We fully expected this adjustment to our bond rating when we assumed the debt service on the Higgins Middle School,” he said. “Fortunately, our city finances remain very strong and enable us to absorb this type of fluctuation.” According to Moody’s, “a de-
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cline in the city’s reserves and liquidity as well as its gradually rising but still average debt burden and manageable pension liability” compelled the credit rating agency to take Peabody’s bond rating down a rung. Bettencourt said the city was in the same position 14 years ago when the Brown and Carroll Elementary Schools were built. “This is very similar to what happened in 2004 when debt service on two new elementary schools contributed to a lowering of Peabody’s bond rating from Aa1 to Aa2,” he said. Although the city now has a lower bond rating, Moody’s still praised city officials for exercising “conservative budget practices,” such as limiting the use of free cash to fund daily operations. These modest spending practices have helped keep the tax rate at bay, something Bettencourt
has strived to accomplish since he took office in 2011. “I have fought to maintain healthy reserves since I became mayor,” he said. “In addition to helping to keep our tax rate among the lowest in the state, healthy reserves contribute to higher bond ratings, which are crucial when borrowing for largescale projects like the new Higgins.” Bids on bonds In addition, Bettencourt announced that, on March 6, Peabody accepted a bid for an $8.3 million bond from UBS Financial Services. The bond will be valid for 20 years and has an average interest rate of 2.9 percent. The city also accepted a bid from Jefferies LLC for a $7.8 million bond anticipation note. The note will be valid for 359 days and carries an average interest rate of 1.516 percent.
Council seeks answer to growing rodent problem
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Jeffrey Weisberg of A1 Exterminators spoke to the City Council’s Human Services Committee on March 8 about Peabody’s growing rat problem. (Photo Courtesy of PAT)
By Christopher Roberson
H
ealth Director Sharon Cameron and Jeffrey Weisberg of A1 Exterminators on March 8 spoke to the City Council’s Human Services Committee regarding the sharp increase in the number of rodent complaints last year. During the March 8 meeting, Cameron presented a bar graph showing 15 or more complaints in 2017 from residents in Wards 1, 2, 4 and 5. In contrast, the number of complaints in 2016 was five
or less in those areas. Cameron said trash management, birdseed, feeding pets outside and pet waste are some of the factors that have fueled the problem. “Rats will feed off of dog poop in your backyard,” she said. Cameron also said that evidence of burrowing under a fence is a classic sign of rodents being present. In response, she said, her office has implemented the Integrated Pest Management
PROBLEM | SEE PAGE 10