Englewood Downtown Development Authority outlines TIF-backed projects, events and a $1.6 million budget

Englewood Downtown Development Authority Executive Director Hillary Pardo told the Budget Advisory Committee on Feb. 25 that the agency expects about $3.8 million in tax-increment revenue in 2025 and has budgeted roughly $1.6 million for operating and project expenditures.

Pardo said the DDA is a quasi-governmental entity formed in 2021 to implement the Englewood downtown plan and that it is regulated by state statute. "We are a champion for the downtown district," she said, describing the DDA's authority to fund public-space enhancements, marketing, mobility and land-use planning inside a legally defined downtown district.

The DDA's nut graf: the agency intends to use tax-increment financing (TIF) revenue generated within the downtown district to move priority projects from planning to implementation, while keeping base tax revenue flowing to the city and other taxing entities.

Pardo said the district covers about 250 acres and includes three subareas — the South Broadway corridor, the city center area west to Santa Fe, and a medical/Wellness District to the east. The DDA collects incremental sales and property tax revenue that accrues after the DDA was formed; that increment must be reinvested in the downtown district and, unless extended by the city, reverts after a 30-year period.

On projects and spending, Pardo said the DDA is partnering with the city on the Hamden Complete Streets project and is budgeting close to $500,000 this year and next for streetscape and beautification elements in that corridor. The DDA also committed about $1 million toward Little Dry Creek Park and Plaza design work; the parks department budgeted roughly $2 million for the same project, she said. The South Broadway public-realm plan is at roughly 30% design and the DDA expects to pilot projects as it advances to full design.

Pardo reviewed a proposed surface greenway connecting Little Dry Creek to the South Platte River Trail. The agency conducted a feasibility study on daylighting Little Dry Creek but backed away because the creek runs in a large culvert beneath private properties and daylighting would be costly and required private-owner agreement. Instead, the DDA proposes a surface trail routed north on Cherokee Street and west along Floyd Avenue, with greenery and water-quality elements rather than only a sidewalk or sharrows.

On funding mechanics, Pardo said the DDA currently collects both sales- and property-tax increment in the Wellness District and sales-tax increment in South Broadway. She said property-tax increment is the larger share of the forecasted $3.8 million and that the DDA expects to utilize about $350,000 in sales-tax increment; decisions to "turn on" additional TIF clocks for property-tax increment would require city-council approval and careful timing analysis.

Pardo also described two ongoing DDA programs: marketing and programming — including a new downtown brand, a Swallow Hill music festival planned for June and a monthly vintage market May–October — and supplementary maintenance focused on main streets, gateways and public focal points.

Committee members asked about the creek alignment, district boundaries and whether the DDA actively recruits businesses. Pardo said the DDA's work is primarily to "make this a very welcoming, desirable place" and that marketing, maintenance, safety and place-making activities serve as a business-attraction strategy; the DDA also coordinates with the city's economic development department and the chamber of commerce and offers a small gap grant for long-vacant higher-profile spaces.

Ending: Pardo said the DDA will continue financial planning to position itself to finance capital improvements in South Broadway and the city center area and that any decision to extend or trigger additional TIF clocks would be brought to city council for approval.