City designates Heart of the Falls reinvestment zone and creates neighborhood empowerment zone for incentives

Wichita Falls City Council on June 3 designated the Heart of the Falls neighborhood as a reinvestment zone and approved creation of a Neighborhood Empowerment Zone (NEZ) to encourage rehabilitation, reinvestment and design preservation in the area.

Planning staff said the reinvestment zone is a prerequisite to offering tax abatements and other incentives; the NEZ program is intended to offer incentives such as building-permit fee waivers, planning and zoning fee assistance, lien-release policy application and the ability to abate increases in appraised value for qualifying reinvestment projects. The incentive tools will apply to both residential and commercial properties in the defined boundary area, south of Seymour Highway, east of Kemp Boulevard, north of Kell Boulevard and west of Brook Avenue.

Staff said the program is optional for property owners: owners must apply with planning before pulling permits; incentives are tied to improvements that extend the life of structures (for example, roofing, HVAC, plumbing, electrical) and include design guidelines to preserve neighborhood character. The NEZ also couples participation with maintenance expectations: staff proposed excerpts of the International Property Maintenance Code to ensure long-term upkeep of improvements. The neighborhoods' citizen committee and planning staff drafted the guidelines and maintenance standards, and staff said outreach and additional neighborhood meetings will continue after council approval.

Council approved the reinvestment zone designation and directed staff to implement the NEZ incentives, design guidelines and property-maintenance elements as part of the adopted neighborhood revitalization plan. Staff said they have prepared a one-page FAQ and plan neighborhood engagement events; building-inspections staff will flag possible projects for NEZ outreach when permit activity is identified.