North Las Vegas mayor targets improved city bond rating

North Las Vegas Mayor John Lee will deliver the State of the City address on Thursday, when he plans to highlight the city’s achievements in 2016 and goals for the coming year.

Lee declined to provide specifics of the speech, which will be delivered during a sold-out $45-per-person luncheon scheduled to start at 11:30 a.m. at the Aliante hotel-casino.

But Lee said one goal is to raise the city’s bond rating, which is issued to determine a municipality’s creditworthiness.

North Las Vegas bonds fell to junk status during the recession, but have gradually increased over the last few years, and are now rated Ba2, affecting about $412.4 million of outstanding debt, the most recent figures released last year by Moody’s Investors Service show. The city’s outlook remains stable, the credit agency said.

“We can save millions of dollars in interest if we can get that bond rating up, and refinance our existing bonds,” Lee said Monday.

Lee was named the 2016 Municipal Leader of the Year, a national recognition from American & City, a trade publication for municipal workers and elected officials. The magazine credited Lee with paring down a $152 million deficit since taking office in 2013, and jump-starting development at the Apex Industrial Park by attracting Hyperloop One, Faraday Future and other companies.

“Where we started in North Las Vegas to the point we’re at right now has been recognized nationally,” Lee said. “We went from the worst ZIP codes in the country to the fastest turn-around city through this Great Recession we just had.”

Contact Art Marroquin at amarroquin@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0336. Find @AMarroquin_LV on Twitter.