After a delay caused by market volatility, the Louisville Arena Authority could move forward soon with the sale of bonds to finance the city's new downtown facility.The authority is expected to get an offer this week from a bond insurer, and if that deal is sealed, the bonds could go on sale in June.Authority Chairman Jim Host says it's a good time to float the bonds as the market has improved recently."It's the first time that we've seen in the last four months, the market actually come back to normal, or close to normal, as it relates to municipal bonds rates as opposed to treasuries," Host said.The authority's bond underwriter, Goldman Sachs says by waiting until spring to sell the bonds, the authority should save about $50 million.Host says the delay in selling the bonds won't interfere with the construction schedule. The arena is slated for completion in the fall of 2010.The arena authority plans to sell $360 million in bonds to construct the facility at Second and Main Streets.
Rick Howlett was midday host and the host of LPM's weekly talk show, "In Conversation." He was with LPM from 2001-2023 and held many different titles, including Morning Edition host, Assignment Editor and Interim News Director. He died in August 2023. Read a remembrance of Rick here.