City of Westfield Redevelopment Authority
The Authority’s $40M financing drove broad demand and more than $1M in savings
Background
The City of Westfield Redevelopment Authority brought a $40 million AA+ rated financing to market consisting of $26.665 million of tax-exempt Lease Rental Revenue Bonds, Series 2026A, and $13.335 million of federally taxable Lease Rental Revenue Bonds, Series 2026B.
Proceeds supported the continued development of the Grand Park District, including the acquisition of real property and development of a new parking garage and related facilities to serve the district. A portion of the financing also refunded bond anticipation notes previously issued for the projects.
Opportunity & Implementation
As a key member of the City of Westfield’s financing team, Baird worked with the City, its municipal advisor and bond counsel to optimize the taxable and tax-exempt components based on project facts and market conditions. The financing team structured the taxable and tax-exempt portions to pay down the taxable portion of the financing first, thereby reducing the overall borrowing cost to the City by more than $1 million.
Prior to the bond sale, Baird actively marketed the transaction to institutional investors, generating broad investor demand during the order period. The financing attracted 24 unique investors, with particularly strong demand for the taxable bonds. Subscription levels for the taxable bonds ranged from 1.8x to 6.3x, allowing Baird to lower yields by up to six basis points from initial pricing indications, helping reduce borrowing costs for Westfield.
Results & Impact
The financing provided long-term funding for projects supporting the continued development of the Grand Park District. The financing structure, investor participation and final pricing resulted in bond payments that fit within existing budgetary resources dedicated to Grand Park.
