Utah Inland Port Authority outlines project-area tax tool for Payson leaders

Scott Wolpert, a representative of the Utah Inland Port Authority, outlined to Payson city officials how the authority uses “project areas” — a form of tax-increment financing — to fund infrastructure and incentives that can attract industrial and related employers.

Wolpert told the meeting the port authority’s project-area tool freezes an existing property-tax base, then captures the increase in property-tax revenue from new development; by statute the increment is split so 75% is reinvested in the project area and 25% continues to taxing entities. He said the authority has created 14 project areas statewide and that the tool can be structured so bonding and incentive capacity only begins when parcels complete construction.

The presentation laid out why the approach can matter to Payson: the port authority can pledge increment revenue to repay bonds for roads, sewer, power or other infrastructure that developers will not front, and it also coordinates recruitment with state economic-development partners. Wolpert said the authority has “secured, just about $2,500,000,000 of projected CapEx into our project area communities. That represents 3,700 jobs, about 3 and a half million square feet of industrial space,” and described the authority as an “administrative agent with a really cool tool.”

Wolpert and council members discussed mechanics and trade-offs. He described the statutory term as 25 years, but said the authority can trigger the 25‑year increment on a rolling, parcel‑by‑parcel basis as companies finish construction; he also said the authority takes a 5% administrative fee on the captured increment to cover administration. Wolpert summarized the finance split: “if you think of a project area as very, very similar to an RDA or a CRA, it's a tax layer.”

Council members asked how the tool differs from local RDAs/CRAs and whether school districts and other taxing entities would consent. Wolpert said the statute sets the percentage split and that school districts have, in many places, accepted the arrangement after reviewing projected dollars rather than percentages. He also said the port authority does not have land‑use or permitting power: “We do not have any land use authority whatsoever. We can't issue construction permits. We can't change your zoning,” he said, adding that creates a local check because the city still controls permits and zoning.

Wolpert described several operational details: project‑area creation begins with a municipal resolution requesting designation; the port authority then processes the designation through a two‑meeting board cycle and public comment; amendments follow the same process and can be implemented in roughly six to eight weeks. He said the authority has an infrastructure bank that can loan to public or private entities, and that local leaders may use captured increment to finance public improvements, main‑street projects or workforce amenities as part of an agreed plan.

Payson officials did not vote on a project-area request at the meeting. Wolpert offered to send a sample resolution and asked the council to consider parcels to include. At the meeting’s opening the council approved the previous meeting’s minutes by voice vote.

Supporters and opponents elsewhere have ranged from municipalities that used the tool to recruit manufacturing and distribution employers to school districts that initially express caution; Wolpert said some school districts later reported significant net dollars under conservative growth estimates. He also noted the port authority treats each project area as one of many regional sites rather than a single centralized hub, and said that approach has yielded projects in both urban and rural Utah.

Wolpert answered several technical questions from council members about rail access, adjacent parcels, and whether already built parcels should be included. He recommended the simplest initial approach is to include undeveloped parcels intended for new industrial or mixed-use investment, but said there are legitimate reasons to place an entire business park — including already developed parcels — into a project area if a city prefers that flexibility.

The presentation did not produce any formal decision to request a project area from the port authority; city staff and council members asked Wolpert to provide more materials and a sample resolution for consideration at a future meeting. Wolpert said the port authority could typically present a designation to its board and complete the process within the stated timelines once a municipal resolution is passed.