Chief Financial Officer Diana Sircar presented a review of the sale and accompanying credit rating at the Feb. 24 board meeting and the bonds were sold Feb. 26, according to a district news release. The district anticipates receiving the funds for the sale around March 25.
Voters approved the $321 million bond in 2023, which focuses on campus and athletic facility improvements and technology purchases.
The details
This is the second bond sale from the 2023 bond with the first completed in July 2023 for approximately $74 million. The first sale was used to fund technology, security equipment and vehicle purchases, and renovations at Buddy Echols Field and other facilities, officials said.
The district has a plethora of projects planned through 2027 and recently approved maximum prices for three campus refreshes totaling $11 million at the Feb. 24 meeting, according to previous Community Impact reporting.
The recent sale will help fund key projects across the district, supporting facilities and infrastructure improvements, according to district documents. Projects include:
- An interior refresh at Town Center Elementary and Denton Creek Elementary
- The Lakeside Elementary renovation
- A Coppell Middle School North refresh and turf and track replacement
- The Coppell High School Fine Arts Rehearsal building construction and Coppell High School gym floor replacement, CTE improvements and roof replacement
- Site improvements including concrete, track resurfacing, classroom and office furniture, band instruments and uniforms, library books, lifecycle replacements of HVAC systems, white fleet vehicles, buses, and kitchen equipment at various schools
- The Coppell High School 9th grade campus auditorium and security renovations
- Technology and network system upgrades and replacements
- The Coppell High School Field house indoor turf and improvements, Tennis Center improvements, and locker room addition
As part of the bond issuance, the district requested credit ratings from agencies Fitch Group and Standard and Poor’s Global Rating, Sircar said. The agencies both gave CISD a AAA financial rating, the highest possible, with the underlying bond rating of AA+.
This rating is based on the district’s ability to maintain a healthy fund balance, with a fund balance well above the required 20% of annual spending. The district’s most recent audit shows a fund balance at approximately 52% after accounting for state-required recapture payments, according to district documents.
“This is good news for our district because having a high credit rating means we finance our bonds at a lower rate, resulting in long-term savings for our taxpayers,” Sircar said.
The agencies were inquisitive about how the district is adjusting to declining enrollment and stagnant state funding and the strength of CISD’s fund balance or savings, Sircar said. Future credit reviews will focus on the district’s ability to rightsize its budget without drawing on reserves.
