Youngstown will Save on Interest Payments, Thanks to State Program

COLUMBUS, Ohio – The city of Youngstown will refinance some of its outstanding debt and save about $23,000 over the next year, thanks to a state program.

The deal is being administered through the Ohio Market Access Program (OMAP), administered by Ohio Treasurer Robert Sprague.

The city utilized OMAP to issue a tax-exempt note and a taxable note to retire outstanding notes. The OMAP credit enhancement will allow the city to achieve meaningful interest cost savings. The original notes were issued to finance renovations of the city hall annex building and a portion of the construction costs for the city-owned Covelli Centre.

The issuance marks the fourth time the City of Youngstown has utilized OMAP. The previous three deals have saved the city an estimated $318,132 in interest expenses since 2016.

“Like many municipalities across Ohio, Youngstown has been presented with many unforeseen challenges in the last 18 months,” said Kyle Miasek, director of finance for the city. “We’ve worked to implement every possible strategy to maximize our resources, and OMAP helped provide the city with significant savings on our borrowing costs. Additionally, we’re grateful for the foundation we have to access the capital markets on our future projects.”

OMAP is a credit enhancement program that leverages the state’s excess liquidity and high short-term credit rating to help improve market access and lower borrowing rates for local governments. Since its 2014 launch, OMAP has supported more than 200 deals, ranging from $390,000 to over $100 million. There have been no defaults, and to date, OMAP has generated more than $4 million in estimated savings for local governments.

Any government subdivision in good fiscal standing, including cities, villages, school districts, counties, townships, and special districts, issuing short-term debt is eligible to participate. For more information, visit https://omap.ohio.gov/.

“Ohio’s local governments are always working to identify wise and effective ways to invest in their communities,” said Treasurer Sprague. “Whether it’s renovating and constructing city buildings or financing economic development projects and road repairs, OMAP helps local governments stretch their dollars and reduce borrowing costs. We’re proud to have Youngstown as an ongoing partner in OMAP and support the city as they navigate the municipal debt market.”

Published by The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.