DEBT

A large part of Rock Hill’ s long-term financial plan focuses on managing debt. The City uses fiscal prudence in the issuance and repayment of debt. Debt financing is typically issued for large-scale capital projects. These projects and funding are included in the annual capital improvement plan and are reviewed by the management team quarterly.

The City ' s total outstanding debt as of June 30, 2021 is $433 million. Of that, about 66% is related to Utility Revenue Bonds issued to fund various capital projects related to the upkeep of our utility systems. 20% is related to TIF bonds mainly to fund infrastructure improvements to downtown Rock Hill and Riverwalk area, and 8.6% is related to limited obligation bonds repaid through hospitality tax collections.

Tax Increment Financing 19.9% General Obligation 3.1%

Other Governemental 0.2%

Hospitality Tax 8.6%

25

Total Debt Service By Year (Principal Only)

Utility Revenue 65.9%

20

15

10 14.8 17.2 19.6 19.6 20.3

5

0

FY22

Tax-Increment Financing

FY23 FY24

Hospitality Tax Bonds

FY25 FY26

Stormwater Bonds

TOP 10 TAXPAYERS

ROCK HILL SCHOOL DISTRICT 2,294 PIEDMONT MEDICAL CENTER 1,711 COMPORIUM 1,050

WINTHROP UNIVERSITY 944

CITY OF ROCK HILL 738

TAXPAYER ASSESSED VALUE

ROSS DRESS FOR LESS INC* $9,598,842 COMPORIUM $7,100,846 AMISUB OF SC, INC $3,884,985 WEST SHORE RIVERWALK $2,522,694 ATOTECH USA, INC $1,949,390 PIEDMONT MEDICAL CENTER $1,684,700 COROPLAST TAPE CORP* $1,598,878 LOWENSTEIN PARTNERS LLC $1,440,192 LIT INDUSTRIAL LP* $1,422,905 MCKESSON MEDICAL* $1,414,272

The preparation of the budget and the information provided in the financial statements are impacted heavily by economic trends. These trends include the local economy, long-term local and state financial implications, and the national economy.

After a few years of increased unemployment rates due to COVID-19, Rock Hill unemployment rates have finally decreased to pre-pandemic levels. This decrease is attributed to many businesses opening up in FY21 and more jobs becoming available in our economy.

In October 2020, Arrival, a global electric vehicle company announced plans to establish its first U.S. Microfactory in Rock Hill at Legacy East. The $46 million investment is expected to create 240 new jobs. Founded in 2015 and based in London, England, Arrival works with cities around the world to create zero-emission mobility solutions for today ’ s transportation challenges. The company ’ s South Carolina operations will utilize a new cell-based assembly method to produce vehicles rather than a traditional automotive production line.

DIRTT Environmental Solutions Ltd. began operations in the spring of 2021 at Legacy East. DIRTT is an interior construction company that uses proprietary software to design, manufacture and install fully customizable environments.

The first business is well on its way to completion at Aspen Business Park. Southwood is a veteran owned company making a $6.5 million investment and will create 73 new jobs. Southwood manufactures all types of signs, out of various materials, to the highest standards of sign fabrication possible.

Knowledge Park has seen several announcements, investments, and agreements this year. New restaurants including Sweet Tea Café, Ay Papi, Kounter, and Old Town Kitchen and Cocktails opened in the Knowledge Park area representing investments of over $350,000. Construction at the Exchange, a new multi-family residential and retail community representing a total investment of over $35 million is well underway.

The Common Market has renovated an existing building on Main Street. Common Market promotes itself as an uncommon convenience store, deli and bar with 3 Charlotte area locations. Each store uniquely embraces and reflects the community. This adaptive re-use project will maintain the integrity of the building.

The Perch, developed by Warren Norman with contractor Leitner Construction, will include renovations to the old Coke building plus a new building. The Coke building has a square footage of 5,343 square feet. The Perch (new building) will be 23,000 square feet. Currently, two tenants have signed on to the project including Hobo ’ s in the former Coke building and Off the Tracks Brewery in The Perch. The total investment for this project is $14 million. The completion date with businesses ready to open is scheduled for next year.

MILLAGE RATE HISTORY

The City is evaluated for its overall credit worthiness and for specific debt issuances. A good credit rating reduces borrowing costs and generally reflects an organization ’ s sound financial practices. The City ’ s underlying rating on general obligation debt was ” from Standard & Poor ’ s and “Aa3” from Moody ’ s. The City ’ s underlying rating on its combined utility system revenue bonds was “A” from Standard & Poor ’ s and “A2” from Moody ’ s. This means the City is considered to have high credit quality. Standard and Poor ’ s describes the “AA” rating as “ very strong capacity to meet financial commitments. ” For utility related debt, the City has maintained an

“A” rating from Standard and Poor ’ s and “A2” from Moody ’ s. Moody ’ s describes “A2” as “ upper-medium grade ” and “ subject to low credit risk. ” Benchmark comparisons of the City ’ s credit ratings can be found at www.rankingrockhill.com.

The City takes pride in keeping property tax rates reasonable—balancing the needs of the community and being good stewards of the public dollar. The City ’ s millage rate has remained flat at 93.5 mills for the last ten years. Over the last twenty years, the tax millage rate has dropped 12% (as high as 105 mils). The City has kept millage rates low due to the City ’ s priority of financial responsibility for tax dollars and leveraging of the growth of the community.

Miracle Park is a state-of-the-art park providing people of all abilities the opportunity to enjoy the park’ s amenities and programming year-round. The park is operated, maintained and programmed by the City of Rock Hill Parks, Recreation and Tourism (PRT) Department. The park' s development has been led by the York County Disabilities Foundation in partnership with the City of Rock Hill and Winthrop University and supported by numerous volunteers and donors.

Playground and Sensory Wall: These areas provide space and activities for children and adults of all abilities to interact and play.

Miracle Field: Miracle Fields are specifically designed for individuals with physical and cognitive challenges. The rubberized surface of the fields makes them wheelchair accessible. Bases and pitching mounds are painted on the surface so there are no raised obstacles. The dugout area is large enough to accommodate wheelchairs and other adaptive equipment.

Baseball Field, Concessions and Restrooms: A traditional baseball field, concessions stand and restrooms are available.

Parking: The park has 150 parking spaces and a drop off area at the Miracle Field. Overflow parking is available at Winthrop University Coliseum, across Eden Terrace from the park. For large events, wheelchair accessible shuttles will be available for transportation from the Coliseum parking lot to and from Miracle Park.

MIRACLE PARK

CAROLINA PANTHERS TRAINING FACILITY

The Carolina Panthers announced in June 2019 that they would be moving their headquarters and practice facility from Charlotte, NC to Rock Hill. Since the announcement, the City has been working with the Panthers organization to finalize the intergovernmental agreement, land development agreements and financing agreement. The current masterplan includes a mixed-use development totaling over $2 billion in private investment. The City, County and School District have worked together to create a multi-county industrial park that will pledge fee-in-lieu-of-tax revenue towards the public infrastructure needed on the site. While the public investment is larger than any other project the City has been a part of, the private investment will change the landscape of the City forever.

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