The Evansville Redevelopment Commission on Oct. 21 reviewed a draft annual spending plan that places priority funding on completing the North Main Streetscape in the Jacobsville district and updates bond-service and TIF projections ahead of next year’s budget cycle.

The discussion matters because the spending plan documents how the commission expects to use tax-increment financing (TIF) and other redevelopment funds for infrastructure, debt service and potential grant programs; commissioners and staff said the plan will guide decisions on design work, contingencies and whether to continue certain pilot programs.

Lana, redevelopment commission staff, described the largest planned capital cost as finishing the North Main Streetscape and estimated construction at about $1.5 million, with an internal contingency figure discussed at roughly $2 million until bids are received. She said the streetscape work will extend from First Avenue at Virginia Street north to Second Avenue, include curb-ramp and sidewalk upgrades near a school for visually impaired students, new street lighting and intersection safety improvements, and then continue west on Franklin to connect with existing bike facilities and future city-engineer projects toward the Pigeon Creek Trailhead. “We’ll redo all the curb ramps and the sidewalks,” Lana said, adding the design team will tighten and consolidate poles and add audible crosswalk devices at the blind school.

Staff noted one design purchase order previously issued for Jacobsville — a contract with Rundell Arts Burger (design PO of about $216,000) — and reported roughly $40,000 spent to date and an amount the presenter referred to as remaining on that contract. Lana said the design work should wrap up in 2026 and the commission will bid construction in early spring.

Commissioners discussed how bond-service payments and TIF collections will shape available funds. Lana said bond payments are generally stable but can vary year-to-year and that collections for the commission’s districts come as increment collections in July and December; she estimated current cash reserves in the neighborhood of $2 million but noted an existing commitment of $1 million toward the Crawford Door project. Staff and commissioners also discussed recent state assessment changes affecting multifamily property valuations and cautioned that the full revenue impact may not be clear for several years.

The commission debated other items that appear in the spending plan template but are likely to be zeroed out for 2026, including planned property acquisition and grant programs. Lana explained that line items labelled as grants or loans for eligible low‑income households derive from statute (Indiana Code 36-7-14-12.2) but are not automatically paid from TIF; they instead require a separate source of unrestricted or grant funds and administration through a neighborhood development corporation. “It’s not as cut and dry as it seems right there in that statement,” Lana said of the statutory language, and she cautioned commissioners that those expenditures are contingent on available non‑TIF funds.

Commissioners also reviewed a two‑year pilot contract in which the commission funded a Jacobsville director position with a $150,000 maximum; the contract concluded after invoicing through 2024 and a final payment in July 2025. Staff and commissioners said the pilot produced limited new business activity in the Jacobsville area and that the contract was a consultant arrangement rather than a city position. The commission indicated no current plan to renew the pilot absent a clear change in results or a different structure for the role.

Members discussed the Burkhart TIF area and developer financing in other projects. Staff said a recent development there borrowed more than anticipated but is repaying the loan quickly, which could accelerate the area’s move toward producing usable increment for commission projects after the county’s TIF portion expires in 2028. The commission also noted announcements about a privately financed project called Fieldhouse Flats and clarified that developer purchase bonds or conduit debt are not city obligations and therefore would not appear as city debt in the commission’s spending plan.

The commission asked staff to prepare updated amortization schedules and a revised draft of the spending plan. Lana said she will circulate draft materials and return a proposal for the 2026 spending plan for action at one of the November meetings prior to the December 1 filing deadline.

Votes at a glance
• Motion to approve minutes of the Oct. 16 meeting (with corrected adjournment time): approved (ayes recorded).
• Motion to approve accounts payable voucher (payments to Southern Indiana Gas & Electric for Jacobsville and downtown lighting totaling $180.62 across three items: $12.22, $68.87 and $99.53): approved (ayes recorded).

Ending
The commission did not set a final, adopted 2026 spending plan at the Oct. 21 meeting; staff will prepare updated numbers and bring the draft back for a vote in November. The body also discussed meeting logistics for 2026, including a return to Room 307 and transition to Microsoft Teams for web participation.