St. John Redevelopment Commission approves lease, authorizes bonds tied to redevelopment district property tax

ST. JOHN, Ind. — The Town of St. John Redevelopment Commission voted unanimously June 11 to make a preliminary determination to enter into a lease and to authorize execution of a lease between the St. John Redevelopment Authority and the St. John Redevelopment Commission, clearing the way for bond financing backed by a redevelopment‑district property tax.

The actions came after a public hearing with no public comment and a presentation from municipal advisors and counsel. Greg Balsano of Baker Tilly Municipal Advisors told the commission that lease rentals would be set to match debt‑service payments after bonds are issued and that the maximum lease payment under the agreement would be $3,500,000 in any year. "The average payment is estimated to be around $2,000,000 a year," Balsano said.

The nut of the matter: the lease and related bond issue would be repaid from a new property tax on the redevelopment district — the commission said the district has the same boundaries and net assessed value as the town — and the…