Colin enjoys travelling, especially when travelling includes hiking. Here he is in the Alps near Wengen, Switzerland.
People
Colin J. Kalvas
Colin Kalvas practices public finance and economic development law. Colin serves political subdivisions, financial institutions, developers and special purpose districts such as special improvement districts and new community authorities in many different capacities. He regularly represents clients in matters related to the issuance of bonds, securities law, federal income tax law, contracts, real property acquisition, development, and governmental revenues.
Colin has been at the forefront of developing property assessed clean energy (PACE) financing in Ohio. His PACE efforts include serving as counsel to PACE administrators and energy special improvement districts throughout Ohio, as well as serving as bond counsel and lender’s counsel to Ohio port authorities and other financial institutions that finance energy efficiency and clean energy projects through PACE. He is well known within the PACE community and has spoken at several national PACE conferences. He has extensive experience negotiating, documenting and closing PACE transactions, including as part of complex capital stacks.
Colin also frequently represents port authorities on common bond fund, conduit and capital lease transactions.
Other significant portions of Colin’s practice include the negotiation, implementation and monetization of economic development tools like tax increment financing (TIF), special assessments, community redevelopment area (CRA) abatements and new community authority charges.
Experience
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$120 million mixed-use development project
Successfully led the closing of a mixed-use public-private development project in downtown Columbus, Ohio. Served multiple roles in the project’s financing, including as bond counsel to the developer, commercial loan bank representative and legal counsel for PACE financing.
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Ohio’s largest PACE transaction
Served as counsel on a $16.3 million refinancing of a construction loan that involved significant PACE financing. The project funds eligible upgrades to a hotel near The Ohio State University campus in Columbus, Ohio. Energy efficient improvements include upgrades to the lighting and the building envelope.
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COTA downtown bus pass program
Assisted the Capital Crossroads Special Improvement District with structuring and creating a process for implementing a program to encourage 43,000 downtown Columbus, Ohio, commuters to bus to work. Capital Crossroads SID is an organization that represents business owners working to keep the downtown area a clean and safe place to work and live. The goals of the bus pass program are threefold: address the limited downtown parking situation, fill vacant offices and improve air quality.
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$25 million rehabilitation of Dayton's Delco building
Served as bond counsel to an Ohio port authority in the financing of efficiency upgrades to Dayton's Delco building, a historic landmark located in the city’s Water Street District. The bonds will be repaid using the PACE financing tool. Additionally, the project has received state historic tax credits, and the Delco building has been nominated to the National Register of Historic Places.
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$3.3 million energy upgrade to Columbus’ PNC building
Served as bond counsel to an Ohio port authority in the financing of efficiency upgrades to the downtown Columbus PNC Plaza building. These upgrades were part of a PACE financing program. The deal included a low-interest loan from Franklin County in addition to the bonds that the finance authority sold. The project is expected to save the owner of the building about $187,000 per year.
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Office park upgrade with PACE financing
Helped a real estate developer refinance and upgrade its office park partially to improve energy efficiency by working with the developer to levy PACE special assessments, secure a PACE loan with the special assessments and pass the obligation through to tenants.
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Property tax and levy planning negotiation with outlet mall
Successfully negotiated payments to offset lost revenues to total $1 million for a school district from an outlet mall developer over the taxation of a $100 million mall. Worked with the school district to evaluate levy options given proposed development.
Professional & Community Activities
- Board of Trustees, Columbus Children's Theatre
Presentations & Published Works
- Presenter, “Building Financing for Ohio's Infrastructure,” Council of Development Finance Agencies, Ohio Financing Roundtable, Columbus, Ohio, September 2022
- Presenter, "Economic Development: Responsible Growth in Your Community," Ohio Township Association Law Directors' Group, August 2018
- Presenter, “Financing Strategies to Support Manufacturing Facilities,” CDFA National Development Finance Summit, November 2017
- Presenter, "Advanced Economic Development," Ohio Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA), Annual Conference, September 2017
- Presenter, "Economic Development Fundamentals," Ohio Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA), Annual Conference, September 2017
- Speaker, “Being an Effective Economic Development Negotiator,” Ohio Township Association (OTA) Networking Forum, June 2017
- Presenter, “Overland Industrial Park: The Past, Present and Future,” Council of Development Finance Agencies (CDFA) Brownfields Financing Webinar Series, Reviving Economic Activity on Former Manufacturing Sites, June 2017
- Presenter, “Legal Issues in PACE Financing,” Council of Development Finance Agencies (CDFA), National Intro PACE Finance Course, October 2016
- Presenter, “Economic Development Fundamentals,” Ohio Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA), Annual Conference, September 2016
Bar Admissions & Activities
- Member, National Association of Bond Lawyers
Education
- The Ohio State University (J.D., summa cum laude, 2014); Order of the Coif; Order of the Barristers; Articles Editor, Ohio State Law Journal
- The Ohio State University, (B.A., magna cum laude, 2011)
Mountain Man
Puppy Love
Colin’s yellow lab, Betty, as a puppy.
Running Man
Here’s Colin about to cross the finish line of the 2010 Columbus Marathon. He still runs, but not this much.