From the Elkhart Truth:
The Elkhart Redevelopment Commission gave the final stamp of approval to a new TIF district for South Main Street on Tuesday.
The commission also conducted a public hearing on what will become the city’s eighth TIF district.
The Tax Incremental Financing District will allow the city to capture the increased assessed value and revenue from a defined area because of improvements made to the area. It’s not an additional tax. The new money that’s generated from improvements is then used to pay for infrastructure improvements in that area.
The original assessed value, called the “base” AV, isn’t captured. It’s distributed to local governments and schools as usual.
TIFs have funded traffic improvements at NorthPointe Boulevard and Lusher and Oakland avenues and built the Marion Street parking deck.
The aim of the development plan accompanying the resolution is to foster economic development. Benefits, it says, are additional jobs and investment; addressing vacant buildings and sub-standard structures; improved traffic flow; incentives for economic development and residential improvements; and an increase in property values.
Included in the development plan is a list of 191 parcels the redevelopment commission “has interest in acquiring title to ...” Most of the properties are on Main Street, but some also are on Middlebury and Prairie streets. The plan says the properties are “underperforming to the extent that adaptive re-use of the existing structure will likely not be sustainable.”
Estimated cost of acquisition would be $8.7 million; cost of redevelopment is about $6.5 million.
The South Main Street Gateway TIF was already approved by the redevelopment commission, plan commission and Elkhart City Council.
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http://www.etruth.com/article/20120411/NEWS01/704119967
