County aims to save $340,000 with bond refinancing deal

May 22—Past bond borrowing to fund improvements to the county's water infrastructure will cost the Cullman County Commission a little less, thanks to a new refinancing deal that will cut the county's interest rate by nearly half.

At its regular meeting this week, the commission approved the refinancing deal, which covers a series of municipal bonds for capital improvements issued in the early 2010s to fund pipe upgrades and replacement by the county water department.

David Coyne, a Montgomery-based financial advisor for Missouri-based investment firm Stifel Financial Corp., said the current bond market presents refinancing opportunities that debtors simply didn't have at the time the bonds were issued. "It's exchanging a higher rate for a lower rate, just as you would want to do if you were to refinance your house," he said following Tuesday's commission meeting. "The current rate was at 3.24 percent. The current estimate is for that to drop to 1.74 percent, which almost cuts it in half."

The new agreement does not extend the payment cycle on the county's bond issue, which is set to mature in 2030. Coyne said the refinancing agreement is expected to save the county approximately $340,000 over the remaining bond payment period.

In other business at its regular meeting, the commission: — Approved a tax abatement for an industrial construction project codenamed "Project Ride," to be located in unincorporated Cullman County, for its initial capital investment of $4,010,000. The new construction represents an automotive manufacturer of customized components, and the finished structure will have "a tourism aspect to it," according to a City of Cullman economic development official. When opened, the business is expected to add five new local jobs that pay between $25-$30 per hour. — Approved a change to the county employee nepotism policy to allow the hiring of cousins, aunts, and uncles. — Agreed to the signing of a letter of intent in partnership with the City of Cullman to recruit and fund next year's Major League Fishing tournament at Smith Lake Park. — Authorized commission chairman Jeff Clemons to sign as the county's authorized representative for the local disbursement of funding from the American Rescue Plan Act. County administrator John Bullard said the commission is still weighing how best to allocate more than $16 million in expected federal funds, which must be used to directly address or remediate qualifying hardships due to the COVID19 pandemic. — Approved the purchase of Express Vote voting machines to provide assistance to voters with disabilities, with a net cost to the county of $8,775 for licensing, maintenance, and support. — Approved a one-time $500 additional allocation to county polling places, at an overall cost of $18,500. — Authorized Clemons to sign, on behalf of Cullman and three other counties, the Alabama Department of Youth Services Agency Grant Agreement for fiscal years 2021-2023. Cullman serves as the administrating entity for the grants, which are disbursed to Cullman, Lauderdale, Jackson, and Blount counties. Cullman County's share of the award, which comes to approximately $640,00 overall, is $207,752. — Amended, from $10,000 up to the state-approved bid limit for qualifying items, the bid amount that will require commission approval for the purchase of construction equipment only. The move will allow county facilities and equipment manager more independent flexibility in approving the purchase of construction equipment on the county's behalf. — Approved the purchase of a new soft-serve ice cream machine for Sportsman Lake Park, awarding the sale to low bidder Dykes Foodservice Solutions of Huntsville in the amount of $14,181.64. — Recognized retiring road department employee David Tucker for 10 years of service. — Issued a proclamation honoring Alexandria Flanigan as this year's Miss Alabama USA. — Approved the surplus of a 2005 Chevrolet Colorado used by the road department, to be auctioned at GovDeals.com. — Awarded the low bid of $10,500 to Bryant Enterprises for the painting of the county garage. — Approved a plat proposal for Eastern Shores at Catoma, Phase 1; a minor subdivision containing 27 lots located in road district 3 off County Road 1462. — Approved a plat proposal for Deer View Estates; a minor subdivision containing 14 lots located in road district 4 off County Road 794 and County Road 793. — Approved a plat proposal for Park Side Estates; a minor subdivision containing 10 lots located in road district 3 off Hulaco Road (County Road 1598) and Herman Church Road (County Road 1570). — Re-bid a used roadbed processor after receiving no qualifying bids from a previous attempt. — Renewed a rolling bid for concrete materials to be used by the road department to Concrete-Ready Mix USA. — Approved a request for the courthouse parking lot to be used for Swamp John's food truck vending from 3 p.m. until 9 p.m. on June 14. — Approved a request from Agcor Steel to use the south parking lot of the courthouse for a job fair from 7 a.m. until 4 p.m. on May 28.

The next regular commission meeting will be held at 6 p.m. in the commission meeting room of the Cullman County Courthouse. A 4:30 p.m. public work session will precede the meeting at the same location.