Eastern York SD board approves amendment to LERDA tax-abatement for redeveloped property

District finance staff reviewed a proposed amendment to a 2021 Local Economic Revitalization Tax Assistance (LERDA) agreement and the board approved the amendment after discussion.

A staff member explained the original LERDA agreement tied an 80% tax abatement to the first year of completion, 60% to the second year, 40% to the third and 20% to the fourth. The property owner did not complete the redevelopment within the original three-year completion window; the property was completed in May 2025, staff said.

District counsel and staff drafted an amendment to honor the abatement but to start the schedule in the current completed year. Under the amended schedule described to the board, the first year of the amended agreement would be a 60% abatement, the second year 40% and the third year 20%.

Staff said the property's full annual tax bill on the face is $65,000; applying the amended abatement schedule would result in total tax forgiveness of about $78,000 over the three remaining abatement years. Using the amended schedule the owner would pay roughly $26,000 in the first amended year, about $39,000 in the second and about $52,000 in the third, staff explained.

A board member asked whether the property lies in Spring Prairie and whether other taxing bodies had taken similar action; staff said the property is in Spring Prairie and that the county and Helen Township had separate processes and that staff did not know whether the other taxing bodies had matched the amendment.

District staff said they consulted the district solicitor to draft the amendment and would communicate the revised bill to the tax collector after approval. The board approved the amendment by voice vote; no individual roll-call tallies were recorded in the public transcript.

Ending: Staff said they will notify the tax collector of the amended bill schedule and continue coordination with other taxing bodies as needed.