BY KARISSA MILLER
The Iredell County Board of Commissioners on Tuesday unanimously approved the sale and issuance of approximately $123.9 million in general obligation and limited obligation bonds to finance the construction of the new Weathers Creek High School in Troutman.
The resolution obligates the board to pay back the money over a 20-year period:
• $80 million in general obligation bonds were approved by the voters in 2020. The county was able to roll over extra proceeds, which brought the total up to $83.9 million.
• $40 million in limited obligation bonds were approved by the commissioners in 2024. These bonds did not require voter approval.
In addition to the $123.9 million in financing, commissioners have agreed to use $10 million from the county’s fund balance for the Iredell-Statesville Schools high school.
The new school, which will be built at 246 Overcash Road in Troutman, will have a capacity of 1,600 students. The school is needed to alleviate overcrowding at Lake Norman High School and South Iredell High School.
Before the vote, Chairman Bert Connolly said the decision to delay construction – the bond referendum was approved in March of 2020 – resulted in significant added cost for taxpayers.
“Time has consequences,” Connolly said. “I hope from this point forward everyone gets their act together, and we get on with it. When these things hit, it will be a substantial amount of money.”
Back in 2020, commissioners thought that they would have a new high school for $80 million. However, construction costs have increased. The $133.9 million is for phase I, which does not include athletics facilities.
Since the county administration budgets on a four-year cycle, County Manager Beth Milton explained that the staff and board planned well ahead to anticipate the debt payments on both loans when they set the tax rate during reappraisal.
However, the finance team and commissioners did not anticipate also spending money out of the county’s fund balance to cover part of the cost of the high school.
As a result, the $22.4 million set aside in the county’s budget for constructing a new health department building last year was put on pause.
Bond Repayment
County Finance Director Caroline Taylor estimates that the interest rate for the general obligation bond, which is voter approved, will be slightly lower than the limited obligation bond.
She estimates the interest rate on the general obligation bond will be around 3.6 percent, while the rate on the limited obligation bond will be about 3.7 percent.
When asked by the chairman, Taylor told the board that the interest rate for the bond for Mooresville Graded School District’s new middle school was 1.55-percent in 2021. That school bond was also approved in March of 2020.
County officials ran a hypothetical report based on current market conditions to estimate the amount the county will pay in interest on the I-SS bonds.
• If the county issues an $83.9 million general obligation bond with a 3.6 percent interest rate over a 20-year repayment period, the county will pay about $44 million in interest over the life of the bond.
• For the $40 million limited obligation bond with a 3.7 percent interest rate over a 20-year repayment period, the county would pay $20 million in interest over the life of the bond.
I-SS officials hope to break ground on the new school around March. The project will operate on a 30-month timeline or shorter. In the meantime, money will be needed to build Phase II of the high school to include athletic facilities.