WPCNR CITY HALL LIMITS. By John F. Bailey. May 7, 2004: The city move to transfer the assets and personnel of the White Plains Parking Authority under city control to replenish its dwindled fund balance, announced yesterday, comes five weeks after Moody’s, the bond-rating service redesignated the city’s General Obligations as AA-1 Negative on March 26.
Standard & Poor’s Corporation, the other bond-rating agency, classifies the city’s financial outlook as “outlook stable as of now,” with the S & P analyst noting that the next review would come in March of 2005, or “anytime within the year.”
The Moody’s analyst WPCNR spoke with Friday afternoon said the “negative outlook” indicated “a possible trend” in city finances, “with no rating review committee review at this time.” The analyst did say that review could come at any time in the next year.
Eleanor McDonald, criticised city financial management during Monday evening’s Common Council meeting, said when asked by WPCNR what the Negative rating meant, that she contacted Moody’s and got clarification from the Moody’s man. She said the Moody’s analyst told her the city was being “challenged (with the Negative rating) because of their operating deficits over the last two years.”
McDonald pointed out to WPCNR that the city had balanced the budget with $10 Million this year from assets of the Parking Authority and was looking to balance the 2004-05 budget with $5.4 Million (from the Parking Authority) this year, as ab example of the operating deficits, as well as bonding for rolling stock to the tune of $1.7 Million in 04-05 and bonding for 2.3 Million to pay off their obligation to the state pension fund, announced Wednesday.
McDonald, who is former comptroller of the Town of Harrison and the Town of Greenburgh, said that the transfer of Parking Authority assets proposed yesterday by Ted Peluso and George Gretsas, The Mayor’s Executive Officer, would be considered a “material event” that would most likely be considered by Moody’s and Standard & Poor’s as a reason to reaffirm the city credit worthiness, particularly since the transfer would bulk up the fund balance. Mr. Peluso, the consultant, who along with former White Plains Budget Director, Eileen Earl, yesterday in a report recommended absorption of the Parking Authority by city, estimated yesterday the Fund Balance would go up to approximately $10 Million from its current level of around $5 Million.
McDonald said that would most likely be an event that would force the bond authorities to reassess their bond rating.
Ms. McDonald cautioned however that the authorities would look at the whole picture, too, of what the city is doing. She noted dryly, that the sales tax projection of $37.8 Million was “a hefty projection.”
