Moody’s Investor Service, S&P Global (formerly Standard & Poor’s), and Fitch Ratings recently verified that Chester County‘s financial picture had allowed it to maintain its top-level AAA ratings. The county is the only one in Pennsylvania with three AAA ratings — the “triple-triple” — and is one of just a handful in the nation. The high ratings help the county achieve lower interest rates on bond issues. County commissioners recently approved a new bond issue that will support numerous projects: the preservation of Crebilly Farm in Westtown; improvements to Ash Park in Coatesville; downtown revitalization in Oxford; preliminary design and engineering for the Chester Valley Trail extension; and a new fire and emergency medical services paging system for the county. Jamie Schlesinger, managing director of PFM Financial Advisors of Malvern, told the commissioners that the reaffirmed AAA rating status meant that the refinancing of a 2014 bond issuance, planned for later in 2024, would be at rates lower than any other municipality in Pennsylvania, and could result in savings of $1.85 million.
Source: Daily Local; 3/19/2024