First National Bank Proposal Accepted By Public Facilities Authority Board
The Washita County Public Facilities Authority Board took one more step down the path to refinancing the outstanding bonds issued to rebuild the Washita County Justice Center nearly 10 years ago. Instead of a new bond issue, the board has accepted a proposal from First National Bank & Trust to pay off the existing bonds with a new loan which will result in a savings to the county of more than $750,000.
The county currently pays $74,147.04 per month to service the bonds, which were issued in 2009 and would mature in 2029. Under the First National Bank proposal, the Public Facilities Authority would borrow $6,245,000 on a 10-year, 2.98 percent, fixed interest loan to refund, or pay off, those bonds. The new payment on that loan would be approximately $60,244.55 (depending upon the date of closing and exact pay-off figures) per month. That payment creates a monthly payment savings of approximately $13,902.49, which translates to a savings of $1,668,298.20 over the 10-year life of the loan.
The new loan amount, however, includes the $905,250 currently held in a reserve account by the authority being used to pay down the principal amount of the bonds to reach the $6,245,000 figure, so the net savings for the county would be approximately $763,048.80.
The Public Facilities Authority Board is scheduled to meet at 9:00 a.m. Monday, Dec. 2, 2019, to sign the proposal documents and then forward their recommendation to the Washita County Board of Commissioners. The commissioners will meet at 9:30 that morning and vote to approve or reject the refinancing. If they approve, the closing is expected to take place on or about Dec. 10, 2019, with the new payment schedule beginning in January 2020.