Colfax awards low bid for $1.33 million to Bremer
By LeAnn R. Ralph
COLFAX — Bremer Bank of Menomonie has won the low bid for $1.33 million in refinancing and new financing for the Village of Colfax.
A total of five bids were received, and the bids were due at noon on the day of the Colfax Village Board meeting on January 14, said Brian Reilly of Ehlers and Associates.
Reilly said he was surprised the village had received five bids and that he had expected three or perhaps four bids.
The lowest bid from Bremer was for an interest rate of 2.18 percent interest. The highest bid was for 2.25 percent interest from Bosc, Inc. out of Milwaukee.
According to the report Reilly presented to the village board, the interest rates were all close. In addition to the low and high bids from Bremer and Bosc, the other bids were 2.2017 percent interest from Robert W. Baird of Milwaukee; 2.2021 percent from Bernardi Securities of Chicago; and 2.23 percent interest from Bankers’ Bank out of Madison (Dairy State Bank, Colfax).
“The bidding was tight … we usually don’t see things that tight,” Reilly said.
The $1.3 million includes $250,000 of “new money” for several projects, including $160,000 for street improvements, such as the Park Drive extension for the facility being built by Colfax Health and Rehabilitation, and $90,000 as the village’s share for building the new fire station.
Payments on the refinancing and new debt will extend to 2028.
The annual payments for the refinancing and new debt will be around $60,000.
The tax levy impact previously had been projected at $65,000 annually.
The total projected cost of principal and interest was $1.58 million; the final cost will be $1.55 million, roughly $34,000 less.
Closing on the sale of $1.33 million in general obligation bonds for the village will be February 6.
Over the long term, the present Colfax Village Board and previous village boards have been “good stewards” of the taxpayers’ money, Reilly said.
“You didn’t get this kind of interest (if you weren’t good stewards),” he said.
The Colfax Village Board voted unanimously to award the low bid for refinancing and new money to Bremer Bank.
Bremer Bank is not planning to resell the bonds and is expected to continue holding the bonds until they reach maturity, Reilly noted.
Other business
In other business at the January 14 meeting, the Colfax Village Board:
• Approved an application from the Colfax EMS Association to use the Colfax Rescue Squad Building for the second annual pancake breakfast on Saturday, March 23.
• Approved a bartender operator’s license for Paige Berge of Colfax.
• Approved the mobile home park license for City View Villa Court from January 1 through December 31, 2013.
• Approved a training request from Colfax Police Chief Pete Gehring for the Wisconsin Police Leadership Foundation February 10-13 in Wisconsin Dells. The registration cost is $135.
• Approved paying the Length of Service Award for Colfax firefighters for 2012 in the amount of $860.
• Completed a drawing for the order of names on the April 2 ballot: For village president — Christian Olson; Scott Gunnufson. For village trustees — Beverly Schauer, Anne Schieber, Susan Olson, Christian Olson. For the one-year term to fill the position currently held by Gunnufson: Scott Gunnufson.