Concord/Scioto Community Authority Case Study Argus Growth Consultants, Ltd. (“Argus”) serves as Administrator to the Concord/Scioto Community Authority (the “Authority”) in Concord Township which is situated in southern Delaware County, Ohio. Argus has served in that capacity since the Authority was created in late 2007. The Authority’s initial land area covers approximately 1,000 acres.  The Authority was created to develop infrastructure that will service the property located within its boundaries and surrounding territory. The Authority’s first charge was to construct a sanitary sewer plant that will ultimately service the property within the Authority and other land in the adjacent parts of the County. Upon completion of construction, the plant will be owned and operated by Delaware County. The cost of the sewer plant is being shared by the County and Authority. The Authority is also charged with constructing a water line and other associated improvements that will be operated by the privately owned Delco Water. The County is not sharing in the costs of the water related improvements. In November of 2007, the Authority issued $14,600,000 of revenue bonds to finance its portion of the projects. The bonds were sold on a private placement basis to five investors.  It was anticipated that the Authority would make debt service payments on the bonds from an allotment of sewer taps granted to the Authority by Delaware County that could be sold over a period of 15 – 20 years. As land is developed, the Authority also has the authorization to impose a “Community Charge” of up to 10.25 mills on property within its boundaries that have access to water and sewer service. Interest on the bonds was capitalized for a period of approximately one year in order to provide the Authority some lead time to ramp up its tap sale program.  Delaware County is not immune to the slowdown in housing starts and commercial development that is being experienced throughout the State of Ohio and nation at large. The Authority was able to sell only approximately 10% of its annual sewer tap allotment in 2008, and the prospects remain dim in the immediate future. The first interest payment not completely provided for from bond proceeds comes due on May 1, 2009. It is obviously not in the best interest of the Authority, County or bondholders to have debt service payments become delinquent. One of the responsibilities of a good Administrator is to identify looming problems and propose solutions before such problems reach crisis level. In November of 2008, Argus brought the tap sale issue to the attention of the Authority Board. The tap sale process and flow of funds are governed by an Intergovernmental Cooperation Agreement between Delaware County and the Authority as well as the bond documents (Trust Agreement). As Administrator, Argus initiated and led negotiations between the County and the Authority to craft an amendment to the Intergovernmental Cooperation Agreement that would address the problem. The revised agreement reconveys a portion of the Authority’s tap allocation to the County in exchange for the County agreeing to meet debt service obligations from its own sewer utility revenues for a period of two years. The amendment: Provides a reliable source of funds to meet principal and interest obligations of the Authority during 2009 – 2010.     Minimizes competition for taps between the County and the Authority on an annual basis thereafter.     Provides a more stable structure to guide the sale of taps by the Authority during the remaining life of the bonds. It is the hope and expectation of the Authority that the economic downturn will subside by 2011 and that the Authority will once again be in the position to provide for debt service on the bonds through its own tap sales and other revenue sources. In addition to reaching consensus with the County, the Authority also needed to present and gain acceptance for the proposal from the bondholders and bond trustee. Argus led those negotiations which resulted in the approval of a supplemental trust agreement that incorporated the provisions agreed upon by the County and the Authority. All too often, we see potential problems with Community Authority and TIF projects linger and fester until a crisis situation unfolds. At that point, it is frequently too late to rationally consider alternatives and implement corrective action in advance of the problem becoming a reality. A competent Administrator can play a vital role in identifying problems early and proposing and implementing solutions. The Concord/Scioto Community Authority case is just one example of how Argus can help its clients adapt to changing circumstances on the ground and averting potentially crippling problems.