North County city’s S&P global rating raised to A+
– Standard & Poor’s Global Ratings has elevated the long-term credit rating of the Atascadero Successor Agency of the Community Redevelopment Agency’s series 2024A and 2024B Tax Allocation Refunding Bonds to A+. The rating services indicated a stable outlook.
The City of Atascadero announced the development with enthusiasm, highlighting the positive evaluation by S&P Global Ratings. The agency stated that the stable outlook reflects confidence in the redevelopment project area’s steady growth and its ability to consistently cover bond payments.
Factors evaluated by the rating service included assessed value (AV) growth, local economic expansion, the balance between residential and commercial properties, diversity in the concentration of the top ten taxpayers, limitations on additional debt issuance, and environmental, social, and governance factors.
The S&P Global Ratings report noted, “Overall, project area AV has grown steadily during the past few years with an average growth rate of 5.6% annually. Most recently, project area AV increased by 7.3% in fiscal 2024, bringing total project area AV up to $1.037 billion with incremental AV increasing to $755.4 million. Management indicates that they expect this growth trend will continue, with further growth expected for the foreseeable future.”
The city, acting as the Successor Agency, says it intends to retire the existing bond issues (2004 Tax Allocation Bonds and 2010 Lease Revenue Bonds) by issuing the 2024A and 2024B Tax Allocation Refunding Bonds in the coming months. Refunding the old bond issues is expected to save taxpayer money throughout the life of the bonds, without extending the maturities or increasing the amount funded. The rating upgrade is anticipated to lower borrowing costs, reflecting the improving economic conditions and effective leadership and management of Atascadero.
For the complete S&P analysis, visit www.atascadero.org.
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