SMETHPORT – McKean County could realize up to an additional
$86,000 in money, due to advanced refunding of the county’s 2002
bonds.

The announcement was made Tuesday during the commissioners
meeting, and comes on the heels of officials indicating in December
that the county has a $100,000 surplus and is in the black for the
second year in a row.

According to Commissioner Chairman John Egbert, the county can
expect a refund of between $75,000 and $86,000 depending on the
market at the time of the transaction. The commissioners
unanimously passed a resolution to work with PNC Capital Markets,
LLC to finalize an ordinance to finance the 2002 debt.

The commissioners are slated to hold a special meeting in the
middle of February to consider the ordinance. There was no
immediate word on exactly how much funding the county would receive
from PNC.

County Administrator Richard Casey said after the meeting the
county has not yet decided what to do with the additional funding,
but it would likely go toward securing future loans and capital
improvements to the county’s facilities.

The 2002 bonds expire in 2022, according to Casey. Officials
said a total of $3.425 million in aggregate principal is eligible
for the advance refunding, thereby reducing debt service to the
county.

“They (PNC) are basically handing us a check for the money and
we are going to take it willingly,” Egbert said. Officials said PNC
will also be making money in the transaction.

According to Egbert, when the refunding is completed, there will
be no changes to the county’s current expiration date for the bonds
or in debt service, however, there will be a slightly different
interest rate.

The 2002 bonds – which at one point stood at $5.7 million – were
approved by the previous board of commissioners, of which $3.3
million was used for the construction of the county’s new Children
and Youth Services offices and 911 Center along U.S. Route 6 in
Smethport near the Penn State Cooperative Extension Office.

The bonds also went to finance renovations to the area near the
main courtroom inside the courthouse, including the proposed
construction of a holding area for those waiting to go in front of
the judge.

Casey said Carl E. Swanson and Sons Inc. of Bradford is in
charge of building the holding area, adding there has been a delay
in getting the project started due, in part, to discrepancies in
old drawings for the courthouse that didn’t indicate that duct work
needed to be done at the site.

“It’s progressing,” Casey said.

In addition to the funding from PNC, the county is also expected
to garner $16,524 in revenue this year from real estate taxes on
cell towers. Officials are also hopeful the creation of a new
economic development agency will grow the county’s tax base enough
to secure no property tax increases for several years.

The county – which has not experienced a property tax increase
in two years – also saved money through the sales of Sena-Kean
Manor, the former county home, and the landfill.

In other news, the commissioners authorized entering into mutual
aid agreements with Elk, Cameron, Potter and Warren counties, as
per federal and state law.

“It’s an effort to clean up the resolutions already in place,”
Casey said.

Egbert said the agreements allow the municipalities the ability
to apply for and receive grants for emergency services or
equipment.

“We need these (agreements) in place,” Egbert said. “We don’t
want to lose out on any funding by not crossing the t’s and dotting
the i’s.”

In a related note, the commissioners also entered into mutual
aid agreements for emergency and disaster services with local
municipalities.

Also, the commissioners authorized the distribution of $125,000
to 22 municipalities across the county this year as part of the
county’s liquid fuel funding. The allotment to each municipality
depends on its population and mileage figures. The City of Bradford
received the most funding at $16,851.

The rest of the total $260,000 allocation to the county – about
$135,000 – will be used to lower the debt service for the Boyer
Crossing Bridge project over the Allegheny River near Port
Allegany.

The liquid fuel funds are handed out to the municipalities on an
annual basis.

The commissioners also appointed Bob Harris of Bradford to a
four-year term on the McKean County Conservation District.