The City of Decatur’s Linda Harris just sent around a press release from Standard and Poor’s announcing that the City of Decatur’s credit rating had just been upgraded from AA to AA+.  AA+ is the second-highest rating a corporation or organization can recieve.

The credit rating review was requested as part of the city’s plan to fund the redevelopment of Fire Station #1, the Rec Center and the Public Works building using bond funding.

Why did Standard and Poor’s upgrade the city’s credit rating?  The release actually provides a detailed list.

The ‘AA+’ rating also reflects our view of Decatur’s:

Diverse employment base and participation in the Atlanta metropolitan statistical area (MSA); Stable and very diverse primarily residential tax base; Strong wealth and income levels; Extremely strong per capita market values; and Good management policies and practices.

S&P’s notes that the city’s “moderate debt burden and moderate carrying charges under a slower-than-average amortization schedule” are a “weakness”, however “this is somewhat offset by the city’s limited capital needs given Decatur’s mature nature.”

The release goes onto suggest that the city could improve its credit rating still by diversifying its tax base to include more commercial and industrial property – something the city commission has been desperately trying to do over the past couple years.