Tacoma issues $100 million bond for development over next year

Tacoma issues $100 million bond for development over next year    The Port of Tacoma said Friday it has issued $100 million in revenue bonds, a move that over the next year will help the port fund land purchases, rail improvements and redevelopment of the former Kaiser Aluminum smelter site into a marine terminal.
   “Last year, we opened three new container terminals at a total capital cost of $240 million — and we are preparing for more growth in the future,” said John Wolfe, Port of Tacoma Deputy Executive Director John Wolfe, noting in a statement the port’s five-year, $434 million capital improvement program. “We are investing in our inland infrastructure — roads and port-area rail — to ensure our future as a center for trade, a place that our customers can continue to be successful and our role as a creator of jobs for our region.”
   The $100 million bond issue, with an effective fixed interest rate of less than 4 percent and funded through Lehman Brothers, was approved by the Port of Tacoma Commission on July 27 and executed Aug. 3.