system
A chat on subreddit /r/wallstreetbets
human
there is a paywall , so here is the article 
"

In an effort to make the city's bond offerings appealing to the growing environmental, social and governance market, Chicago is selling so-called social bonds this week to residents looking to make a buck while investing in the city's future.

As part of the $1.2 billion Chicago Recovery Plan put together by Mayor Lori Lightfoot and approved by the City Council, the city is issuing a $150 million bond offering and giving Chicagoans dibs on the right to purchase ahead of the larger market.
The proceeds will help fund seven projects previously approved, which include constructing 2,000 units of affordable housing, purchasing temporary shelter space for those experiencing homelessness, replacing 200 vehicles in the city's fleet with electric vehicles, making city lots ready for sale, community development projects and the planting of 15,000 trees across the city.

The series is being sold through the Sales Tax Securitization Corporation, a nonprofit entity previously created by the city, and backed by Chicago's sales tax, to secure a lower interest rate. It also has higher credit ratings than the city itself.

The city will sell $97.7 million in tax-exempt bonds and another $60 million taxable series, both funding the initiatives included in the Chicago Recovery Plan.

"We met with the top ESG portfolio holders in the country before we structured these bonds," said Jennie Huang Bennett, chief financial officer for the city of Chicago. "The No. 1 thing that they told us that they'd like to see out of an ESG bond is the impact reporting, as well as the curating of projects within the social bonds."

To entice retail buyers, the city lowered the minimum purchase price to $1,000 from $5,000 and worked with Fidelity, where investors can open a brokerage account in a matter of hours.

The city will get a first look at how much interest it received from small investors at the close of the sale Wednesday afternoon. Retail investors can still purchase the bonds on Thursday but will be competing with the institutional investors that normally purchase city bonds."


What level of interest rate would you need to lend money to the city of Chicago even though the bonds are backed by sales taxes in the city?
gpt
Thanks for bypassing the pay wall, far too many post a link just for it to be unavailable to most of us.