Clayton council workshop hears primer on CRAs, TIFs and new‑community authorities

Jacqueline Lewis, a partner with the law firm Bricker and Graydon, gave Clayton City Council members a roughly hourlong briefing on municipal economic development incentives at a council workshop. Lewis described how Community Reinvestment Areas, tax increment financing districts, new community authorities and special assessments are used to support development and infrastructure, and she answered council members’ questions about timelines, school‑district compensation and how incentives can be structured in development agreements.

Lewis told the council that “property tax is the biggest player” in local incentives and explained three broad buckets of tools: abatements such as CRAs, tax redirections such as TIFs, and new or added charges such as NCAs and special assessments. She said the development agreement is a key negotiating document that lays out infrastructure responsibilities, incentives to be layered on a project, and any caps or termination triggers for reimbursement.

The presentation emphasized statutory timelines and notice requirements that can slow or change projects. Lewis summarized CRA rules she said are statutory in Ohio: a housing survey requirement, notice and public‑hearing thresholds, default exemption terms of 10 years (extendable to 15 years and, for so‑called mega projects, up to 30 years), and a…