Frost Brown Todd (FBT) has launched its affiliate FBT Project Finance Advisors LLC to assist government entities and borrowers in creating ideal financing solutions for projects in the areas of infrastructure, economic development and redevelopment, real estate, health care and public-private partnerships.
David A. Rogers, member of FBT’s Public and Project Finance Service Team with nearly 40 years of experience in structuring money-saving infrastructure financings for municipal clients, has been assigned the role of president.
“The establishment of the affiliate allows us to work closely with clients to create the best possible financing for their projects, while also fulfilling the stringent regulatory requirements under the federal Dodd-Frank Act,” says Rogers. “We’ll be using both traditional and new techniques to create structured financing solutions, including components such as tax credits and incentives, a variety of bonds, and federal and state guarantees and grants. We will also focus on securitizations, P3 transactions and advising municipalities and borrowers on derivative structures.”
The Dodd-Frank Act mandates that lawyers only give legal advice to this protected class of clients. As an Independent Registered Municipal Advisor (IRMA), the team can now provide general advisory services, economic development advisory services and bond transaction specific services to local government entities.
Jason L. George, who will serve as senior vice president, has 18 years of experience in public and structured finance, with a focus on bringing innovative solutions to complex project finance challenges. Through their extensive work with FBT’s Public and Project Finance Service Team, George and Rogers have assisted some of the largest municipalities and government entities in Ohio in the funding of numerous projects, including improvements of schools throughout the state, and the development and construction of major complexes, such as the Global Center for Health Innovation and the Convention Center in Cleveland.
The team worked with the Ohio Treasurer of State to create the Ohio Market Access Program (OMAP), adding the state’s higher credit rating on short term notes issued by local government, leading to increased market access and lower borrowing costs, and with the City of Cleveland and its partners in the development and construction of the Ernst & Young Tower. One of the most significant projects for the city in the past decade, this public-private partnership was completed in the midst of the recession through 35 separate tax-exempt and taxable bond, grant, tax-credit, EB-5 and other funding sources.