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Stalled projects at California School for the Deaf, Riverside to get priority | Inland News | PE.com | Southern California News | News for Inland Southern California
The Schwarzenegger administration plans to sell bonds to let construction resume at California School for the Deaf, Riverside much sooner than for hundreds of other projects stalled because of the state's budget mess.
Crews stopped work on a $70 million dormitory and $8 million multipurpose center at the Riverside school last month after a state panel froze advance financing for billions of dollars' worth of bond-funded projects.
Members of the Pooled Money Investment Board said California's budget problems and tight credit market risked the solvency of the Pooled Money Investment Account.
Although the Legislature approved $40 billion in budget solutions last week, it's unclear when the pooled-money board will lift the freeze on project financing, officials said.
A unique set of circumstances puts the two Riverside projects and another in Sacramento first in line for money among the 5,300 halted projects worth $18 billion.
The work is related to completed projects already scheduled for April bond sales. For the School for the Deaf, bonds for the new dormitory and multipurpose building would piggyback on $15 million in borrowing to pay for a new air conditioning system.
The larger bond sale would make it more attractive to buyers, officials said, as would having construction resume quickly.
"At this point, these are the only ones that can get a hall pass," Department of Finance spokesman H.D. Palmer said.
Tom Dresslar, a spokesman for Treasurer Bill Lockyer, said the pooled-money board will consider easing the freeze in March.
"The treasurer's goal is to get in the bond market as soon as possible and to lift the freeze, at least partially," he said. "We hope to provide some relief from the freeze in the next month or so."
Laurie Pietro, a spokeswoman for the School for the Deaf, said the school has received no word on when construction will resume. The buildings have been fenced off and the contractor stops by regularly to make sure that the sites are secure, she said.
The halted projects were a high-profile casualty of the state's 100-day budget standoff. At least $1.3 billion worth of school, road and other projects covered by the pooled-money freeze are in Riverside and San Bernardino counties, according to a state list.
The Schwarzenegger administration plans to sell bonds to let construction resume at California School for the Deaf, Riverside much sooner than for hundreds of other projects stalled because of the state's budget mess.
Crews stopped work on a $70 million dormitory and $8 million multipurpose center at the Riverside school last month after a state panel froze advance financing for billions of dollars' worth of bond-funded projects.
Members of the Pooled Money Investment Board said California's budget problems and tight credit market risked the solvency of the Pooled Money Investment Account.
Although the Legislature approved $40 billion in budget solutions last week, it's unclear when the pooled-money board will lift the freeze on project financing, officials said.
A unique set of circumstances puts the two Riverside projects and another in Sacramento first in line for money among the 5,300 halted projects worth $18 billion.
The work is related to completed projects already scheduled for April bond sales. For the School for the Deaf, bonds for the new dormitory and multipurpose building would piggyback on $15 million in borrowing to pay for a new air conditioning system.
The larger bond sale would make it more attractive to buyers, officials said, as would having construction resume quickly.
"At this point, these are the only ones that can get a hall pass," Department of Finance spokesman H.D. Palmer said.
Tom Dresslar, a spokesman for Treasurer Bill Lockyer, said the pooled-money board will consider easing the freeze in March.
"The treasurer's goal is to get in the bond market as soon as possible and to lift the freeze, at least partially," he said. "We hope to provide some relief from the freeze in the next month or so."
Laurie Pietro, a spokeswoman for the School for the Deaf, said the school has received no word on when construction will resume. The buildings have been fenced off and the contractor stops by regularly to make sure that the sites are secure, she said.
The halted projects were a high-profile casualty of the state's 100-day budget standoff. At least $1.3 billion worth of school, road and other projects covered by the pooled-money freeze are in Riverside and San Bernardino counties, according to a state list.