A wealthy town in Southern California is tapping the municipal bond market to build a new police station and renovate an 8-acre oceanfront park.

Santa Barbara – where the average home sells for about $2 million – Borrows $124.2 million in the municipal bond market through the financial authority. The bonds are supported by rent payments that the municipality will pay each year from the general fund, which consists of revenues including property and sales taxes, as well as other tourism-related collections.