Committee recommends adding Lebanon territory to Mid America Enterprise Zone

The Community Development Committee recommended approval of an ordinance to add territory in the city of Lebanon to the Saint Clair County Mid America Enterprise Zone.

City staff explained that enterprise zones provide tax incentives and exemptions intended to stimulate economic growth; qualifying projects may receive exemptions for state, county and city sales tax on building materials incorporated into real estate located in the zone. The Mid America Enterprise Zone was originally established by county ordinance 2073 on Dec. 6, 1999; the current amendment would modify the zone boundary to add parcels located in Lebanon that state and county officials identified as potential development sites.

Staff said a state-required public hearing was held in February 2024 at Lebanon City Hall and no objections from other counties or municipalities were reported. Final approval requires action by the Southwestern Illinois Development Authority and the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity; staff recommended approval and said the amendment must be executed by each municipality in Saint Clair County to be effective.

Committee members asked when the enterprise zone expires; staff said the existing zone authorization runs through 2030 and that enterprise-zone reauthorization occurs periodically (some zones expire earlier, e.g., 2027). A council member asked about a property-tax abatement provision added in 2019; staff said only O'Fallon had enacted that property-tax abatement portion to date and Lebanon had not, so the expansion would not itself confer that abatement in Lebanon unless Lebanon enacted the authorizing ordinance.

The committee voted and recommended the ordinance to council for final action.