City Council members approved a new taxing district Tuesday, but unlike the usual purpose of water and sewer lines or street improvements, this one is to help construct a building.
In March, the Fort Wayne Redevelopment Commission voted unanimously to begin the approval process for the Hatfield Road Economic Development Area, which covers about 28 acres south of the state’s transportation facility on Hatfield Road and a mobile home park that fronts Goshen Road and Coliseum Boulevard.
The City Council’s approval sends the measure back to the Redevelopment Commission for final approval and a development agreement with the Klink Group, which owns the property where the building is to be located. The building planned is a “spec” building, where an industrial building is constructed without a tenant in mind in hopes that one will want it soon after completion. It would be a 75,000-square-foot industrial building with at least 30-foot ceilings, loading docks and some office space. It would be expandable to 150,000 square feet.
Economic development officials say there is a shortage of these kinds of buildings, where they are immediately available for a company that wants to move to Fort Wayne and needs basic industrial space that’s ready to go.
If approved, the tax increment finance district will use the new property taxes charged on improvements made within the district to pay for the infrastructure. In this case, the money would go toward the interest on the loan to construct the building, plus improvements to Hatfield Road and Investment Drive.
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