Morris High School board hears presentation on financing plan for $67 million construction project

Representatives from PMA Securities spoke to the Morris Community High School Board on Monday to break down how the district will finance the $67 million addition as approved by voters last April.

Tammie Beckwith Schallmo, the senior vice president and managing director of PMA Securities, laid the steps out in front of the board.

Their first step will be to obtain an updated credit rating and decide which credit rating agency to go with, Moody’s or S&P. Morris High School last got its credit rating analyzed through Moody’s in 2021, where it was given a score of A2.

Schallmo said the A2 category means the district has strong financial capacity, but it’s subject to some adversity.

Schallmo said she and Anne Noble, the managing director of Stifel Public Finance, are recommending that the district go through S&P instead. She said the goal of getting the district’s credit rated again is to get the highest possible rating. The higher the district’s credit rating, the cheaper it will be to borrow money when it goes out for a bond.

Schallmo and Noble also explained that the district will not be selling bonds for all $67 million at once. Instead, it’s recommending the district sell $14.7 million in bonds this October, intending to sell $37.6 million in September 2026 and $14.7 million again in September 2027, though that plan isn’t set in stone.

There are also options for the school to generate $52.3 million in September 2026 or go for $14.1 million in September 2026 and $38.2 million in January 2027. The scenario the district goes with will depend on the rate at which they’re spending, how fast construction goes and other factors.

“We know that draw schedule will change,” Noble said. “It’s just the best estimates of your construction manager, but it gives us enough to at least start a financial plan.”

The district approved a contract with Bulley & Andrews Construction back in June. Bulley & Andrews will work as the construction manager for the project.

“A year from now, we will be able to get better data out of them,” Noble said, meaning the data coming from Bulley & Andrews. “They’re just guessing to a large extent right now. There are so many variables, but a year from now, you’ll actually be into the project.”

Superintendent Craig Ortiz said the district will continue updating its information available at morrishs.org as design and construction move forward. He said he gets many questions about why there’s no dirt flying yet, and he said the architects are still working on the planning.