Today, Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer and Orange County Mayor Teresa Jacobs laid out a plan that allows the design for the Florida Citrus Bowl renovations to begin immediately with construction starting in January 2014. The Interlocal Agreement which was approved between the City of Orlando and Orange County in 2007 is being modified because of the impacts of the national economic decline. More importantly, this plan gives added protection for taxpayers by increasing reserve funds and establishing a backup plan in the event of another economic downturn.

In addition to addressing the Citrus Bowl, the amendment to the Interlocal Agreement will address cost increases incurred by delayed construction of Stage 2 of the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts.

The changes to the Interlocal Agreement will come before the Orlando City Council on July 9 and the Orange County Board of County Commissioners on July 10. The modifications to the Interlocal Agreement include:

• Removal of the “Jacobs Amendment” to provide equal prioritization of the Citrus Bowl and the performing arts center, and allow the City to issue bonds for Citrus Bowl construction earlier than currently anticipated. The City commits this amendment will not delay the timing of Stage 2 of the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts enter beyond the point that all private funding required to complete the building is available.

• The City of Orlando will issue bonds using revenues from the Tourist Development Tax and will also provide the credit source to back the Citrus Bowl bonds. Property taxes will not be used as a credit source. Bonds are anticipated to be issued in 2014.

• The termination date for the Interlocal Agreement will be extended to 2046 or whenever the bonds are paid off, whichever comes first. This change allows for the debt to be issued with a 30-year term and the lowest possible annual payment.

• The City’s $21 million contribution to the Citrus Bowl required by the 2007 Interlocal Agreement has been set aside for the project.

• The City and County will establish two reserve funds to cover bond payments in the case there is not surplus TDT funds. These reserve funds do not change the amount of money obligated to the project by the City and County as any shortfalls would eventually be repaid when the surplus TDT funds become available.

o Per the 2007 Interlocal Agreement, the City has set aside a $25 million reserve to back the bonds. This reserve is sufficient to cover Citrus Bowl bond payments for at least two years if there are no surplus TDT funds.
o The County will establish a second reserve fund of $12.5 million. This money is an advance of the County’s TDT contribution to the project.

• If, in any given year, the surplus TDT funds along with part of the bond reserve are insufficient to make the bond payments, the City will tap into its $25 million reserve fund.
• The reserve fund would then be replenished by equal contributions from the County’s reserve fund and from the City. For example, if the City withdraws $4 million from its reserve, the City or the CRA will repay the fund $2 million with the other $2 million coming from the County reserve.
• In the event the County’s $12.5 million reserve is depleted, it will not be replenished.

o If TDT funds generated in any given year exceed the amount needed for the bond payment, for a 10-year period, the excess TDT funds can be set aside to cover future shortfalls or to pay down debt. This creates an additional “backstop” if there are years of insufficient TDT funds.