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Dear Editor:
Last week, a quarter-billion dollars disappeared off the City of Carmel debt listing with the Indiana Department of Local Government Finance – $1.6 billion to $1.3 billion, roughly.
The $248 million deduction was probably due to the retiring of two bonds by two new bonds issued in October. At least that’s what the controller and the chair of the city council finance committee indicated when asked.
However, the purpose of the new bonds – now listed on the Indiana Gateway public database – was to refinance $188 million in two earlier bonds. The new bonds ultimately will cost $224 million.
Logic says the retiring of two bonds actually increased total debt $36 million, not reducing it $248 million.
A quarter of a billion bucks isn’t just incompetence, it’s a massive betrayal of the trust of the citizens of Carmel and the investors in its debt.
Bill Shaffer
Carmel