Christopher J. Reitzel

Chris Reitzel is a partner in Nixon Peabody’s Project Finance and Public Finance group. He works with issuers, underwriters and financial advisors on public and project finance projects across a broad range of sectors. He serves as bond counsel, disclosure counsel and underwriters’ counsel on public offerings and private placements. His diverse transactional background includes taxable and tax-exempt debt, complex variable rate products including subordinated and senior commercial paper and direct and standby credit and liquidity facilities.

What do you focus on?

I focus my practice on public and project finance matters, with extensive experience representing issuers and underwriters in the areas of transportation and infrastructure, public power, environmental, higher education, health care and housing matters, including work on financings for the Dormitory Authority of the State of New York (DASNY), Empire State Development (ESD), Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), the Long Island Power Authority (LIPA), the New York State Environmental Facilities Corporation (EFC) and The City of New York (NYC).

Complex Project Experience

I have been fortunate to be involved in some uniquely complex, multi-disciplinary transactions. For example, I served as bond counsel to ESD (through the New York Transportation Development Corporation (an ESD-related entity)) in the approximately US$2.4 billion P3 bond financing for the redevelopment of LaGuardia Airport in New York City, which was awarded the Bond Buyer’s Regional Deal of the Year award in 2016. I also served as disclosure counsel for LIPA’s first-of-its-kind $2 billion municipal utility debt restructuring, which involved preparing a new disclosure document for a stand-alone securitization authority (Utility Debt Securitization Authority or UDSA), as well as a tender offer disclosure document for LIPA.

Disclosure

I have served as disclosure counsel many times, including regularly for two very active issuers with multifaceted operations and diverse financing programs. Since 2000, I have been EFC’s disclosure counsel for its State Revolving Fund programs. Since 2008, I have been disclosure counsel to LIPA (and UDSA). In both cases, I get to work with incredibly talented and dedicated in-house people on cutting-edge financings.