School district will be able to tailor borrowing to construction bids

The opening of bids on Monday for interest rates on general obligation bonds has Decorah school district officials quietly optimistic.  If the lower-than-expected interest rates continue through next spring, the school district might not have to borrow as much money as expected.

Bids on the construction projects at John Cline School and Decorah High School will be opened in March.  That's when school officials will know the total amount of money they'll need to raise.

Two of those funding sources--$10.4 million in general obligation bonds and $3.3 million from the refinancing of the Carrie Lee bonds--are already in place.  School district officials will get bids in January on a bond issue financed by PPEL funds.

That will leave the use of one cent local school option tax funds as the remaining source of funding for the $20 million renovation project.  School district officials say if they have to spend less money on interest, they could cut back on the overall amount of money they will need to borrow for the project.