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A new day: Avant Publications acquires Times Leader Media Group

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Report confirms Wilkes-Barre City Hall fire escape unsafe, city to decide next step

<p>The tally is in for Luzerne County&#8217;s proposed new borrowing: $20.7 million for the 911 emergency radio upgrade project and $1.8 million toward new paper-trail voting machines.</p><p>Add on another $12.1 million to refinance existing high-interest debt from 2008 and 2009 at lower rates plus closing costs, and the entire package comes to a maximum $35.1 million.</p><p>County Manager C. David Pedri released the figures Friday afternoon because the administration and its financial advisor, Harrisburg-based Public Financial Management, have released a request seeking proposals from financial institutions interested in lending the money.</p><p>&#8220;We will continue to work to get this number down through grants and negotiations,&#8221; Pedri told county council in an email Friday afternoon.</p><p>With the focus on whittling down inherited debt, the only new borrowing since the 2012 switch to home rule was $7.9 million for an energy savings project.</p><p>The county&#8217;s outstanding debt was $279 million &#8212; $212 million principal and $67 million interest &#8212; at the end of 2018. As of June 30, another $7 million had been paid toward this year&#8217;s $25 million budgeted obligation.</p><p>Instead of traditional bonds, the county is exploring a line of credit that can be tapped as needed, Pedri said. That approach makes sense, he said, because interest rates should be lower and the money won&#8217;t all be needed at once, with payments for the 911 project staggered as milestones are reached.</p><p>The administration plans to discuss the 911 project pricing at the Aug. 27 council meeting and formally present borrowing options at council&#8217;s Sept. 10 meeting, Pedri said.</p><p>&#8220;Of course the final decision on the amount that is borrowed, or even if we borrow at all, is county council&#8217;s,&#8221; Pedri&#8217;s email said.</p><p>The 911 emergency radio project had been estimated between $16 million and $24 million, and council already had earmarked $1 million to commence work. Two vendors &#8212; JVC Kenwood and Motorola &#8212; submitted proposals by the July 15 deadline.</p><p>For the project to proceed, council must still vote on a contract award and establish the funding source.</p><p>County officials want to switch from a 20-year-old analog system to a digital one because equipment support for the radio transmitters and receivers that allow emergency responders to exchange messages will end Dec. 31, 2020. The system won&#8217;t automatically shut down on that date, but replacement parts have become increasingly difficult to find because they are no longer manufactured.</p><p>Pedri said he is still optimistic Harrisburg-based Maverick Strategies, the county&#8217;s new lobbyist firm, will obtain grants or other outside funding to reduce the 911 project cost.</p><p>The new, state-mandated voting system has been estimated at $4 million. The only earmark for the county has been $327,000 in federal funding, although some state funding is expected.</p><p>Prospective lenders should provide a favorable interest rate for the new borrowing package because the county now has an investment-grade credit rating and a 2018 audit documenting the county came in under-budget four consecutive years, Pedri said. </p><style>
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<div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/web1_Pedri-4.jpeg">
<div class="neCaption">Pedri </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/web1_Pedri-4.jpeg</photo0><caption0>Pedri </caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/web1_luzcocourthouse01.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Luzerne County Courthouse </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/web1_luzcocourthouse01.jpg</photo1><caption1>Luzerne County Courthouse </caption1><photoCredit1></photoCredit1></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Jennifer Learn-Andes</p><p>jandes@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Jennifer Learn-Andes at 570-991-6388 or on Twitter @TLJenLearnAndes.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Luzerne County releases details of proposed borrowing