North Augusta City Council agreed to the terms of a bank loan to fund a portion of the new municipal center and also approved the city's new development code Dec. 18.
The council and the mayor unanimously approved an ordinance for a lease-purchase agreement with RBC Centura to fund up to $6.35 million of the nearly $20 million municipal center under construction at Georgia and Bluff avenues.
The loan will be paid back largely through proceeds from the accommodations and hospitality taxes, officials said. About $525,000 is generated annually by those taxes.
Nearly 60 percent of the building will house city operations, with the remainder reserved for use by the public.
City leaders plan for the rest of the 17-year lease-purchase agreement to be paid off by rental fees from civic events held in a banquet hall, conference rooms and a small auditorium planned for the building.
Remaining financing will come from a combination of general obligation bonds, sales-tax revenue and other city funds.
If tourism taxes and rental fees cannot cover the cost of the loan, the city can use waterworks and sewer system funds to pay for the loan, according to the ordinance.
The city council also passed the final of three readings required to approve the new North Augusta Development Code.
The new development code, which the city's planning department and leaders hashed out over months of debate, regulates numerous building and design standards for new construction within the city limits.
By law, the code must be updated about every 10 years. It was last updated in 1996, according to city records.
In other business, the council recognized the retirement of Jimmy Butler, a 28-year veteran of the city's Parks, Recreation and Leisure Services department.
Reach J. Scott Trubey at scott.trubey@northaugustatoday.com.
