Home Plate Update March 2018 | Page 8

Arlington Successfully Sells The City of Arlington successfully sold $465.4 million in bonds on Wednesday, March 7, to fund the voter-ap- proved contribution to the Texas Rangers $1.1 billion retractable-roof ballpark project. Arlington’s contribution is fully funded at $500 million, as the City is receiving premiums for the tax-exempt bonds. A premium is what an investor is willing to pay over par value to receive a higher interest rate. Overall, 87 investors put in a total of $1.9 billion in orders for bonds, more than four times the amount of the available bonds to sell. This is indicative of a belief in the City’s credit and Arlington’s history of successfully fund- ing and managing these types of public-private projects. Because of this high demand, the City was able to lower the interest rate by as many as 10 basis points on some of the maturities. The Rangers’ lease on the future Globe Life Field, set to open in 2020, runs through 2054. Arlington’s portion of the ballpark debt will be repaid with revenue generated by three existing venue taxes – a half-cent sales tax, a 2 percent hotel occupancy tax and a 5 percent vehicle rental tax, along with the $2 million A t the Park with Chuck is an all-new series on MyArlingtonTV offering Rangers fans a behind-the-scenes look at Globe Life Field construction, fan events and the progress being made at the Texas Live! entertainment complex. The show is hosted by Chuck Morgan, the team’s Executive Vice President of Ballpark Entertainment and Productions and Public Address Announcer. Current episodes include: • At The Park With Chuck: Three Generations of the Jackson Family • At The Park With Chuck: Globe Life Field Site Visit • At The Park With Chuck: Rangers Fan Fest with the Sloan Family 8 ADA Advisory Board Selected HKS, Inc., the lead architectural firm for the new Globe Life Park, had the foresight to reach out to the community for input in the design of this beautiful new stadium. In doing so, they wanted to invite Rangers fans who have disabilities to offer their input, so they reached out to Accessology, the company hired as the ADA accessibility consultants for the project. Kristi Avalos, President of Accessology, has orchestrated dozens of advisory boards like this one and serves as the Chair of this board. The Texas Ranger Stadium ADA Advisory Board is made up of people who are either disabled or represent the disability community. Each one has their own unique perspective and experience in navigating high profile events.