Bangkok--21 Oct--Standard & Poor's
Standard & Poor's Ratings Services raised its underlying rating (SPUR) on Fort Collins, Colo.'s storm water utility revenue bonds two notches to 'AA+' from 'AA-'.
"We base the upgrade on Fort Collins' maintenance of very strong liquidity and coverage, both of which we believe are likely to persist given the city's plans to fund its capital program mainly on a pay-as-you-go basis," said Standard & Poor's credit analyst Timothy Barrett.
"The stable outlook reflects the expectation that the system will continue to exhibit a sound financial and operating performance, coupled with the implementation of a cash-funded capital improvement program," Mr. Barrett added.
The rating also reflects the system's strong and diverse service area economy, anchored by Colorado State University; good coverage of debt service provided by operations; and strong financial performance with excellent liquidity.
Net revenues of the storm water drainage system secure the bonds.
Standard & Poor's expects that management will use operational surpluses and a drawdown of about $6 million in cash in the next two years to fund capital needs in the next few years. At this time, there are no additional debt plans.
Fort Collins ('AA' general obligation [GO] debt rating) is about 62 miles north of Denver, Colo., and is the seat of Larimer County. Colorado State University adds economic stability as the area's leading employer, with enrollment of about 25,000 students. Other leading local employers are in the government, education, manufacturing, and health care sectors.
Complete ratings information is available to subscribers of RatingsDirect, the real-time Web-based source for Standard & Poor's credit ratings, research, and risk analysis, at www.ratingsdirect.com. All ratings affected by this rating action can be found on Standard & Poor's public Web site atwww.standardandpoors.com; select your preferred country or region, then Ratings in the left navigation bar, followed by Credit Ratings Search.
Media Contact:
Edward Sweeney, New York, (1) 212-438-6634
[email protected]
Analyst Contacts:
Timothy Barrett, New York (1) 212-438-6327
Misty Newland, San Francisco (1) 415-371-5073