Plymouth has long held the coveted Aaa bond rating from Moody’s Investor Services, but the city was recently able to do that one better. It also earned the highest rating possible, AAA, from the other major player in the bond market, Standard & Poor’s.

The double Aaa/AAA rating makes Plymouth one of only eight Minnesota cities that have earned the top rating from both firms. The other cities are Bloomington, Edina, Maple Grove, Minneapolis, Rochester, St. Louis Park and Woodbury.

The City of Plymouth sought the bond rating as it prepared to issue voter-authorized bonds to purchase open space for the Northwest Greenway. Having the top rating allows the city to borrow funds at lower interest rates, saving tax dollars over the life of the bonds.

In the most recent bond issue, the City of Plymouth had nine bidders (two or three is more typical) and received an extremely low interest rate of 2.76 percent. This was nearly one percent lower than the already low rate the city’s financial advisor had estimated. This lower interest rate will save taxpayers $270,000 on the $3 million bond issue over 15 years.