Marquette extends downtown TIF to 2054 and approves 5% revenue sharing with DDA

The Marquette City Commission on Aug. 11 approved an extension of the Downtown Development Authority (DDA) tax increment financing plan through Feb. 2054 and authorized a revenue-sharing agreement that will return 5% of the DDA's gross TIF revenue to the city. Both motions passed unanimously, 7-0.

The measures, tied to ordinance 25-08 and DDA TIF plan number 5, were presented at a public hearing and a subsequent new-business item. Tara, director of the Marquette DDA, described the plan as primarily a term extension with “minor housekeeping items such as corrections to property descriptions” and outlined priority capital projects she said the DDA plans to pursue if the extension is adopted.

Why it matters: The 30-year extension (an 18-year addition to the prior plan, which ran to 2036) is intended to give the DDA time to bond for and complete multi-phase capital projects, leverage grants and partnerships, and maintain operations. In return the city will receive an ongoing share of incremental tax revenue; staff estimated that 5% of DDA gross TIF revenue would equal about $63,000 in year one and projected roughly $2,893,580 over the life of the agreement under conservative growth assumptions.

DDA…