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Alternatives for Municipal Financing for Community Dams
There are over 3200 dams in North Carolina, and many of these are owned and maintained by smaller entities that may not have the resources to take care of the dams the way they need to be taken care of. And so after time, an inspection may show that the dam needs...
Addressing the crisis in the finance function (or at least starting to)
We wrote previously about problems affecting the staffing and operation of local government finance departments across North Carolina. The LGC and its staff have grown increasingly frustrated with local governments that can’t keep their books and records in good order...
Issuers Still Don’t Save Money with Green Bonds
We’ve written before about the phenomenon of “Green Bonds,” the idea of borrowing money for environmentally beneficial projects and attaching the “green” label. The idea is that environmentally conscious investors would be willing to pay a little extra for bonds,...
Local counsel’s role in a local government financing
Every local government financing can benefit from the active participation of the city, county or town attorney. Sometimes the attorneys, however, don’t know how best to carry out their role. Here are our notes about how you, as a local government attorney, can...
Using Non-Profits to Spark Arts-Driven Community Economic Development
Arts and cultural community organizations are popping up in hometowns all across North Carolina. These organizations can stimulate economic development and community involvement while providing arts and cultural experiences for residents of all ages. Arts centers are...
More on Trends in Installment Financing
At the close of last year, Liz Farmer of Governing Magazine wrote about trends in the municipal market. Her article, “Three Ways Tax Reform Has Affected the Muni Market” focuses on how new tax legislation implemented in 2018 has affected the overall muni market, while...
The Retail Mall Reimagined
My first job in high school was as a lowly “dump girl” at Nordstrom. Hired to work Nordstrom’s Anniversary Sale at the famous South Coast Plaza mall, girls who “ran dump” were tasked with rapidly restocking the sales floor with copious amounts of tried-on clothing so...
Is there a coming crisis in the local government finance function? Or is it already here?
We noticed an article from the Carolina Journal about a discussion at a recent Local Government Commission meeting. Although the discussion centered on the travails of a specific town, it highlighted problems that are widespread and may be getting worse in the local...
Your public-private partnership and the LGC staff
We’ve heard from several clients and Friends of the Firm recently about their discussions with LGC staff about proposed or possible public-private partnerships. Several lessons emerge from those discussions that are worth sharing. Why would you have to go to the LGC...
You Don’t Have a Lawyer on Your CED Team? You Should.
Successful community economic development projects don’t happen by accident. Implementing a dynamic community economic development plan requires a dynamic team. You’ll want a team of qualified professionals and community stakeholders, including local officials,...
					








