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Redevelopment commission authorizes Ice Miller engagement to pursue two-area TIF plan
Summary
The Columbia City Redevelopment Commission authorized hiring Ice Miller to advise on creating an economic development area with two allocation areas (residential and commercial) and to proceed toward a declaratory resolution at the next meeting.
Columbia City — The Columbia City Redevelopment Commission voted March 11 to engage the law firm Ice Miller to advise on creation of an economic development area and two separate tax-increment financing (TIF) allocation areas, one focused on residential development and one on commercial development, and authorized the commission president to sign the engagement letter.
Commission officials said the two-allocation plan is intended to capture incremental tax value from development in the targeted area so those increments can be reinvested in infrastructure that would support both residential and commercial growth. The timetable supplied by Ice Miller begins this month, and the commission plans to consider a declaratory resolution at its next meeting if it decides to move forward.
Commission members discussed practical effects and flexibility of the plan. A commissioner identified as the school representative on the board noted the restructuring would allow the redevelopment commission to capture the tax increment rather than spreading it among multiple taxing units. Commissioners also asked whether the allocation areas could be changed later if a proposed project changes; staff replied the development plan would need to be amended in that circumstance.
A motion to authorize the engagement and allow the commission president to sign the engagement letter was made, seconded and approved. No specific not-to-exceed fee for the engagement was provided in the materials; the commission said the engagement letter lists hourly rates and that counsel’s fee proposal did not include a single “not-to-exceed” cap in the materials discussed at the meeting.
The commission asked staff to place consideration of a declaratory resolution on the agenda for the next meeting and to share the timetable and engagement documents with members ahead of that discussion.
