Success Stories
Horizon Community Learning Center

Westhoff, Cone & Holmstedt served as lead managing underwriter for Horizon Community Learning Center's $18,560,000 Series 1999 taxable Certificates of Participation in March 1999. This financing was the first publicly sold debt issue for an Arizona Charter School. The State Charter School Legislation had only been effective for two years, and Horizon had less than 3 years of operating history. In addition, Arizona State law did not clearly provide for the issuance of tax-exempt debt for Charter Schools that were not sponsored by a public school district. Therefore, a taxable lease structure was created to facilitate Horizon's financing. Enrollment alone did not provide enough revenues to operate the Charter School and pay debt service, so a variety of other revenue sources were established. These included setting up long-term leases with a community college and local community recreational programs. In addition, a fund raising program was established. Together, these revenues provided enough credit support to qualify the financing for credit enhancement from American Capital Access and thus achieve an "A" rating.

In September 2000, Westhoff, Cone & Holmstedt structured and underwrote Horizon's refinancing of the taxable Series 1999 COPs. In addition, $5,584,091 in new money for Phase II facilities was funded through the issuance of $29,590,000 Education Revenue Bonds via The Industrial Development Authority of the County of Maricopa. Once again, Horizon's debt qualified for ACA insurance. However, prior to the actual bond sale, ACA determined that it lacked the capacity to insure the entire issue, and only $15 million of the issue was sold as "A" rated insured debt. The remainder was sold institutionally as non-rated debt pursuant to a "Sophisticated Investors Letter". The Sophisticated Investor Letter requirement severely limited the market for the bonds, but Mr. Holmstedt was able to successfully educate the institutional community regarding the bonds and ultimately the non-rated bonds were sold to three different firms.

In March 2005, we successfully refinanced the Series 2000 Bonds with new bonds totaling $32,845,000, issued through the Industrial Development Authority of the County of Pima.  For this financing, we obtained a "BBB-" rating on the Bonds from S&P, and we underwrote the Bonds on that basis without credit enhancement.  We extended the final maturity an additional five years, thus reducing annual debt service payments and saving Horizon approximately $400,000 per year.

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