A bond ordinance for $1.3 million was finalized at the July Township Committee meeting to pay off the town’s sewerage plant that serves commercial properties at the Route I-80 interchange.
The cost of the bond will not be borne by taxpayers, rather, it will be paid by the commercial users of the plant in the service area in Columbia, said Mayor Adele Starrs.
For the past 20 years the township has been paying only the interest on the plant. This bond ordinance will allow the township to refinance at a lower rate and pay off the principle along with the interest over the next 20 years, Starrs said.
Sherry Tracey, the township’s bond counsel, said that now is a good time to refinance. She said the township is currently paying 6 percent rate on the interest, which could be lowered to 4 percent. The lower interest rate would benefit the businesses that use the facility, she said. Those customers could see lower costs as they reimburse the township to pay off the bond.
The township pays the upfront costs of the facility, which are then passed along to the businesses that use the plant. All the costs of the plant, as well as the refinancing, will be paid by the businesses, not the Knowlton taxpayers, Starrs said.
Joe brings decades of journalism experience to the Ridge View Echo, covering everything from local school boards to the U.S. Supreme Court. A former National Law Journal editor and Columbia Law School press officer, he now enjoys telling community stories in Blairstown, where he lives with his wife, Rose, and their two dachshunds.
- Joe Phalon, Contributing Writerhttps://ridgeviewecho.com/author/joe-phalon-contributing-writer/
- Joe Phalon, Contributing Writerhttps://ridgeviewecho.com/author/joe-phalon-contributing-writer/
- Joe Phalon, Contributing Writerhttps://ridgeviewecho.com/author/joe-phalon-contributing-writer/
- Joe Phalon, Contributing Writerhttps://ridgeviewecho.com/author/joe-phalon-contributing-writer/
