A Bad Time to Build?

With the collapse of American financial markets, my friends in New York and DC are telling me that even banks offering good deals -- securities backed by real assets -- are having a difficult time placing them. Investors, and especially foreign investors, are so skeptical of this country that they just aren't buying anything.

The Mt. Lebanon School District is looking at borrowing a massive amount of money in connection with a new or reconstructed high school. Is this the time to borrow? Even if Mt. Lebanon wants to borrow, will it be able to? At a reasonable price? There's no sense in committing to construction if a bond issue is likely to fail. Is there?