The City of Savannah has requested the assistance of the Downtown Savannah Authority (DSA) by the issuance of its Downtown Savannah Authority Refunding Revenue Bond (City of Savannah Project), Series 2019.

The proceeds of this issue will provide funding for:

1) Refunding of all outstanding principal amounts of the Downtown Savannah Authority Refunding and Improvement Revenue Bonds, Series 2009B, which were originally issued to help finance public infrastructure improvements in the City's tax allocation district located to the east of downtown; and,

2) Payment of the issuance costs related to the bonds.

The City will enter into a contract with the DSA under which it will pledge to pay all interest and principal for the bonds. As required by State statute, the Authority in turn has made application to the City requesting the City Council's expressed approval for the issuance of such bonds. The approximate amount of the Series 2019 bonds is $8.6 million.

The refinancing is anticipated to result in savings of $658,958 over the life of the refinanced bonds, which is a 6.8% reduction in debt service payments for the City.

Under State statute, the Authority's application to the City to issue such bonds must receive two readings before City Council. The first reading is scheduled for the meeting of March 14, 2019. The second reading will occur at the meeting scheduled for March 28, 2019.

1. The Authority's application to the City should be announced and a public hearing on the application should follow the announcement.
2. Once the public hearing is closed, the Mayor and Aldermen should vote to provide their consent to the Authority to issue the bonds.