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Dear Editor:
On Oct. 7, you reported “The City of Carmel completed the refinance of two outstanding bond issues Wednesday, a move that will save the City more than $16.9 million of total interest savings.”
You were deceived and so were your readers, in general, and the Carmel taxpayers, in particular.
The word is not “saving” but “not spending.” By Carmel city hall illogic, I saved $200,000 this morning by not buying a Rolls Royce and another $11.5 million not buying a mansion in Miami Beach.
The albatross hiding behind the press release, of course, is the massive taxpayer deception of the Carmel Redevelopment Authority: Borrowing in hopes of revenues from stores, apartment buildings and offices to be leased to “someone.”
In 2012, the authority found itself short of cash to meet principal and interest payments. A scandal erupted. The city council bailed out the spenders then but imposed strict controls.
In 2016, those strictures were lifted. In 2020, we’re back to 2012.
And, the self-anointed in city hall abuse both the English language and the taxpayer in the process.
Bill Shaffer
Carmel
One could argue if the city should be borrowing money in the form of issuing bonds, but once issued, it would be negligent not to refinance at a lower rate when possible.
Individuals refinance their mortgages for exactly the same reasons.
A basic understanding of how muni bonds function is recommended reading.