Another emergency loan is coming to Benton Harbor Area Schools from the state Treasury. The Emergency Loan Board has approved a $3.3 million loan for the district, which will be used to pay off vendors Sodexo Management and First Student. Sodexo will receive $2.95 million, while First Student wil be paid $350,000. The district will have to pay the loan back over 15 years, with a fixed interest rate of 1.75%. The first five years are interest only, with the first principal payment to be made in the sixth year. This is the fourth – and largest – emergency loan the district has received from the state. The others were granted in September 2012, December 2013 and July 2015.
