City of Greenville
Financing advances sports and public facility projects across Greenville
Background
The City of Greenville, North Carolina, accessed the municipal bond market to finance several capital projects, including expansion of the City’s sports complex through land acquisition and the first phase of construction of multiple sports fields. Additional projects include replacement of the bulkhead wall at Town Common, along with a new elevated boardwalk, terraced seating and floating dock, as well as security and accessibility improvements at City Hall.
To fund these projects, the City issued $21.935 million of Limited Obligation Bonds, Series 2026. The bonds received an AA- rating from S&P Global Ratings and featured maturities from 2027 through 2046.
Opportunity & Implementation
Baird worked with the financing team to market the bonds ahead of pricing. The 2027 through 2039 maturities were between 3.0x and 5.0x subscribed, allowing yields to be lowered by three to five basis points from preliminary levels.
Demand was more selective from 2040 through 2045, with subscription levels ranging from 1.0x to 2.4x and yields remaining unchanged. The 2046 maturity was 4.7x subscribed and repriced five basis points lower to a final yield of 5.25%.
Results & Impact
Orders exceeded available bonds across much of the transaction, providing room to improve pricing in most maturities. Final yields ranged from 3.53% in 2027 to 5.25% in 2046. The pricing reflected demand across the curve, with yield reductions concentrated in the more heavily subscribed maturities and preliminary levels maintained where demand was more limited. The City completed the $21.9 million financing with lower yields than initially offered across most of the transaction.
