Bond agency frets about city debt load: S&P report warns Daley that public works bills risk growing too fast, big.

Crain's Chicago Business, December, 1999 by HINZ, GREG

Citing a 50% hike in Chicago-area government debt in just four years, a major credit rating agency is raising new questions about the wisdom of billions of dollars in recent spending on schools, fire stations, parks and other capital projects here. New York-based Standard & Poor's Corp. (S&P), in a report to be released today, concludes that the $5.7 billion in new and planned general obligation (GO) debt likely is manageable -- but only "with difficulty" if the record-long economic boom significantly slows or finally ends during the next few years.

So many bonds have been issued by the city, county, Board of Education and other local bodies that their credit ratings may have flattened and "could come under pressure" in the event of an economic downturn, S&P...

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