GLEN ALLEN, Va. — HJ Sims has arranged $93.4 million in financing for LifeSpire of Virginia, a continuing care retirement owner-operator based in Glen Allen.
LifeSpire currently owns and operates four life plan communities in Virginia: The Chesapeake, The Culpeper, The Glebe and Lakewood. The financing provided funds for the acquisition The Summit in Lynchburg, for capital projects Lakewood and The Culpeper, and to refinance existing bank debt with permanent bond debt.
The seller in the Summit transaction is Centra Health System. The $30.3 millionsale also includes adjacent developable land for expansion of the campus.
Sims recommended a finance plan that included reimbursement with tax-exempt bond proceeds of prior capital expenditures initially paid for in cash. The strategy minimized the amount of taxable debt needed to complete the acquisition. Further, the taxable debt incurred was structured as short-term debt, which allows for the taxable debt used for The Summit purchase to be repaid as new cottages are occupied, and removing any refinancing risk inherent with bank debt, while also managing Lifespire’s cash position through construction.