FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Staff from the City of Springfield’s Planning and Development office and Zone 1 Councilwoman Phyllis Ferguson will host a public input meeting about how to spend approximately $300,000 generated by the Commercial Street Tax Increment Financing (TIF) Plan on 5:30-6:30 p.m., Wednesday Aug. 9 at White River Brewing Co., 505 W. Commercial Street. City staff will also provide an update on projects approved for funding after last year’s TIF public input session, which were the purchase of Frisco Lane and rehabilitation of an alleyway that connects C-Street to a public parking lot to the south.
Those who cannot attend the meetings are encouraged to fill out a comment card and return it to the Planning and Development office at 840 Boonville, 2nd floor, Springfield, MO 65802 by Aug. 23
Annual TIF revenues were just over $85,000 in 2016, and over $700,000 has been generated since the TIF was approved. Only public improvement projects identified in the original TIF Plan can be funded with the TIF revenues.
Background on C-Street TIF
The Commercial Street Historic District was approved by Springfield City Council in early 2006 with the recommendation to use tax increment financing for the C-Street redevelopment plan. The C-Street TIF Plan was adopted by Council in April 2008. The redevelopment area’s boundaries are Grant Avenue to the west and Janss Lumber to the east.
Tax increment financing provides for the redirection of the incremental increase in sales and property tax revenue resulting from a redevelopment project to be used for public improvement project-related costs, infrastructure and capital improvements. No TIF revenues may be used for private projects.
“TIF is based on the premise that there will be an increase in the value of real property, new jobs and other economic activity within the redevelopment area as redevelopment occurs,” Economic Development Director Sarah Kerner says. “As the property is improved, the assessed value of real property in the redevelopment area increases above the base level. By capturing the incremental increase in taxes on the assessed value of the property over the base level, revenue for the TIF is produced.”
These tax increments are transferred to a special allocation fund that is administered by the city. The City and county also transfers 50% of all incremental sales tax revenues to this fund. The money collected in the special allocation fund is then used to pay directly for the redevelopment project costs or to retire bonds or other obligations issued to pay such costs
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For more information, please contact Economic Development Director Sarah Kerner at 417-864-1035 or [email protected].