Camino Real, Indiana University price; Texas Transportation yields from 2.23% to 4.21%

By Cristal Cody and Sheri Kasprzak

New York, Jan. 24 - A light day of pricing was led Thursday by a $237 million offering of pass-through toll transportation bonds from Texas' Camino Real Regional Mobility Authority.

The issuer also brought a $181 million issue of consolidated revenue bonds series 2008A.

Both offerings (A2/A) were negotiated sales via Citigroup Global Markets.

A source close to the deal said the terms were not immediately available. The proceeds will be used for a 7.4-mile stretch of highway called State Spur 601, the source said.

Also coming to market was Indiana University with $181 million of consolidated revenue bonds (Aa1). Lehman Brothers was the lead manager.

The terms for those bonds were not available by press time Thursday.

The proceeds will be used for refunding tax-exempt commercial paper and financing costs of new projects, according to a preliminary official statement released earlier this week.

The university also plans to price $87 million in student fee bonds, series S, on Feb. 7, according to a source familiar with the offering.

Both the series S bonds and the consolidated revenue bonds were originally expected to price in February.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. is the lead manager for the series S bonds.

Proceeds from the student fee bonds will be used to refunding outstanding tax-exempt commercial paper and finance the costs of new projects, including a cyber-infrastructure building, a new science building on the Bloomington campus and a new medical education center on the Fort Wayne campus.

Texas Transportation bonds price

Terms emerged Thursday on Texas Transportation Commission's pricing of $1.1 billion in general obligation mobility fund bonds. The coupons ranged from 4% to 5%, according to a source familiar with the offering.

The series 2008 bonds have a serial structure from 2009 through 2030 and two term bonds due 2037, said Jose Hernandez, debt management director for the department.

The bonds priced Wednesday with coupons that ranged from 4% in 2009 to 5% in 2030, he said. The serials bonds had yields from 2.23% to 4.21%.

The $121 million term bond due in 2032 priced with a 4.5% coupon to yield 4.55%, and the $412.8 million term bond due in 2037 offered a 4.75% coupon to yield 4.45%, Hernandez said.

"These are 30-year bonds, so that's a pretty great rate," he said. "There were a couple of investors interested in term bonds. The main thing for us was the true interest cost of 4.43%, so we're very pleased with that."

UBS Investment Bank was the lead manager for the negotiated offering.

The proceeds will be used for transportation projects, including the expansion and construction of state highways.

Also priced Wednesday was a $119.555 million offering of unlimited tax general obligation bonds from the Portage Public Schools in Kalamazoo, Mich.

The series 2008 school building and site bonds (Aa1) priced at a true interest cost of 4.14%, the district said.

The bonds priced in a serial structure from 2009 to 2031 with coupons ranging from 3.5% to 5%.

Assistant superintendent for operations for the school district Tom Noverr said in an interview that the yields ranged from 2.33% to 4.33%.

"Without a doubt, we were very fortunate in our timing," he said of the Wednesday pricing. "In some ways, it's unfortunate for a lot of individuals because of the exit from the stock market. Refunders today got nowhere near the rates we got."

Wachovia Securities was the lead manager with H.J. Umbaugh & Associates as the financial advisor.

Proceeds will be used for renovations to two high schools and two elementary schools.

Rockefeller University's $103.215 million bonds

Looking to upcoming offerings, Rockefeller University plans to price $103.215 million in series 2008A revenue bonds through the Dormitory Authority of New York, a preliminary official statement said Thursday.

The bonds, due July 1, 2039, will be priced at the weekly rate and the proceeds will be used for renovations to existing buildings on campus, as well as the construction of a "bridging building" to link two existing buildings.

The bonds will be priced in a serial structure from 2008 through the 2039 maturity.

Morgan Stanley is the lead manager for the offering, which is set to price Jan. 31.

Glendale to price bonds totaling $110 million

In other upcoming deals, the City of Glendale in California plans to price two bonds totaling $110 million, according to preliminary official statements released Thursday.

The offerings include $60 million in series 2008 electric revenue bonds and $50 million in series 2008 water revenue bonds.

Both bonds are being sold competitively and will be priced on Feb. 5.

The electric revenue bonds (Aa3/A+/A+) have a serial structure from 2018 through 2038.

Proceeds from the electric revenue bonds will be used for the acquisition and construction of improvements to the city's electric system and a deposit to the city's parity reserve fund.

The water revenue bonds (Aa3/A-/A) have a serial structure from 2013 through 2038.

The city will use the proceeds from the water revenue bonds to pay for the construction and acquisition of improvements to the city's water system.

Public Financial Management Inc. is the financial advisor on both offerings.

South Carolina to price bonds

Also coming up is a $93.155 million offering of revenue obligation bonds from the South Carolina Public Service Authority through Santee Cooper, the state's electric and water utility.

The offering is being conducted to refinance a portion of the authority's outstanding debt.

The bonds are being refunded in March at 101% of the 1997 refunding series A bonds, ranging from $2.51 million in 2010 to $37.1 million in 2032, said a preliminary official statement released Thursday.

Goldman, Sachs & Co. is the lead manager for the negotiated offering with Citigroup Global Markets; Bear, Stearns & Co.; Merrill Lynch & Co.; and Morgan Stanley as the co-managers.

Harris County YMCA to price $158.5 million

The Harris County Cultural Educational Facilities plans to price $158.5 million in bonds after market concerns subside, a source said Thursday.

The YMCA of Grater Houston Area's series 2008A revenue bonds have $25.645 million in serial maturities from 2010 to 2022, as well as three term bonds in 2030, 2038 and 2042.

The bonds may be sold within the next couple of weeks.

"We're just waiting for the markets to be right," said Trazanna Moreno, spokesman for the YMCA of Greater Houston Area. "They're kind of crazy right now. I'd love to tell you because then we would have the money."

The proceeds will be used to finance various projects, such as new family and therapy pools, additional facility space, parking areas and sports fields at more than a dozen chapters throughout the county.

Goldman, Sachs & Co., is underwriting the negotiated deal with co-managers Merrill Lynch, Morgan Keegan, RBC Capital Markets and Wachovia Bank.

Virginia Housing Authority remarkets bonds

Elsewhere, the Virginia Housing Development Authority said Thursday that it will remarket its $150 million Commonwealth Mortgage Bonds, series 2007A-AMT (Aaa/AAA).

The bonds will be competitively remarketed on Feb. 26, according to an official statement released Thursday.

The bonds were issued on Jan. 17, 2007 under the designation Commonwealth Mortgage Bonds, Draw Down Bonds, 2007 series A-AMT, subseries A-4.

The bonds have a serial structure from 2009 through 2021 with a $27.6 million term bond due 2026 and a $46.2 million term bond due 2035.

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