Helping L.A. County Provide Vital Social Services

$98,920,000
Community Redevelopment Agency of the City of L.A.
Lease Revenue Bonds

In 2004, Los Angeles County was exploring cost-effective ways to house its social service programs. De La Rosa & Co. and ICO Development, a leading Southern California developer, proposed a public/private partnership to build 220,000 square feet of new office space. By structuring the financing to include a design-build contract and long-term capital lease, De La Rosa was able to negotiate low cost, tax-exempt funding, ICO was able to guarantee a completion date and fixed cost, and L.A. County will eventually be able to own the facility.

ICO selected De La Rosa as Senior Managing Underwriter for a $99-million Lease Revenue Bond to build the Vermont Manchester Social Services project. Because it was not direct County-issued debt, the City of Los Angeles' Redevelopment Agency served as the conduit issuer for the financing, which was secured by County rent payments under a 30-year capital lease.

As Senior Manager, De La Rosa supervised all aspects of the financing and kept channels of communication open between the County, the developer, contractor, insurer, rating agencies, and the City of Los Angeles. The bond financing received high underlying ratings, an extremely competitive bond insurance premium, and a financing structure that met all the parties' objectives.

"De La Rosa and our public/private partnership allowed us to build this facility expeditiously, more cost effectively, and with less risk to the County than traditional methods," said Alex Moradi, President of ICO Development.

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