Bond Rating Upgraded For Lakewood Schools

LAKEWOOD, OH — The Lakewood City Schools bond rating has been upgrade from AA- to AA by S&P Global, the district announced this week. The upgrade could mean big savings for the school system, which can now sell bonds at a lower interest rate reducing cost to the district.

The upgrade will have an immediate impact on the Lakewood Schools. The district said on its website it is looking to immediately re-finance $41 million of bonds that were issued a decade ago. That re-financing can now occur at a lower interest rate.

S&P noted the district's financial management and leadership as part of the reason it was upgrading the bond rating. (Subscribe to the Patch Lakewood newsletter for local news and updates.)

"I am extremely pleased with this new bond rating,” said Lakewood Schools Treasurer Kent Zeman in a statement. “It is a testament to the hard work the administration has done to keep the District on sound financial ground. I am also pleased that this will result in a savings to the taxpayers, who have generously supported us over the years."

Zeman's leadership was cited S&P for helping increase the district's financial reserves over the past seven years. The district was also praised for its control of expenditures, through staff level attrition and savvy labor contracts.

“The rating action reflects our view of the district’s consistently strong financial position, which we believe is sustainable given a track record of strong voter support and good financial management, as well as improvement in the local economy, including assessed value growth,” S&P said in its report.

Photo from Rick Uldricks, Patch