O.C. Hopes N.Y. Visit Will Do It Good : Munis: Advisers will meet with credit-rating analysts to explain the county’s new fiscal plan and ask for better ranking.

Like a scarred and broken prizefighter trying to get back into the ring, Orange County is heading to New York, where its financial advisers will begin working to recapture the bankrupt county’s once-golden reputation on Wall Street.

Early indications are that Orange County’s junk bond credit rating could improve, although not immediately and certainly not to the privileged status it enjoyed in the halcyon days when the county was a highly coveted investment.

Several representatives from Salomon Bros., the county’s financial adviser, will meet with Wall Street’s credit-rating analysts Thursday and Friday to explain details of the county’s newly approved fiscal plan and ask analysts to consider boosting the county’s dismal credit rating.

Such an increase would not only save the county millions of dollars in borrowing costs, but it would also signal a green light to Wall Street investors. Like an individual with a poor credit rating, Orange County now has to pay much higher interest rates and other penalties to borrow money.

“It’s premature to say whether there will be an upgrade, but clearly that’s one of the things we will be discussing,” said Diane Brosen, a director with Standard & Poor’s Corp., which currently assigns the county’s notes its lowest rating: D for default. “There are a lot of factors involved in a rating, and this is an unprecedented situation.”

For years, Orange County was bestowed with nearly the highest credit rating possible, an AA stamp that signaled safety to bond investors. But its ratings were slashed after a $1.7-billion loss in its investment pool forced the county to file for bankruptcy protection Dec. 6.

Another major credit-rating agency, Moody’s Investors Service Inc., will also be scrutinizing the county’s economic health in upcoming weeks to see if an upgrade is warranted. Moody’s currently rates the county’s debt Caa, a speculative grade rating one notch above its lowest rating.

In a report released Tuesday, Moody’s said it will be suggesting steps the county needs to take to improve its credit rating now that its recovery plan has been cleared by lawmakers and Gov. Pete Wilson has said he will approve it.

Analysts point out that the county’s comeback now hinges on how investors will react to the recovery plan’s backbone: a controversial $520-million bond deal backed by remaining county assets such as landfills and major county buildings.

Under the plan, the county still must convince Wall Street to buy more bonds, called “certificates of participation,” from Orange County in order to successfully pay creditors and existing bondholders, who agreed this summer to roll over $800 million of debt until next June 30.

The financing, similar to a large equity loan, will allow the county to mortgage a majority of its remaining real estate assets.