Planning commission splits on middle school redevelopment; forwards TIF and rezoning to council without recommendation

The Hastings Planning Commission on Oct. 13 heard competing views over a proposed redevelopment of the long‑vacant former middle school in Redevelopment Area No. 1, including a request for $1.8 million in tax‑increment financing (TIF) and a rezoning to allow first‑floor residential use. City planner Amber Batson told the commission the project’s “total expenses of the project is $15,000,000, with a lot of funding through loans and grants, and the applicant is requesting 1,800,000.0 in TIF funding.”

Batson said the property has been vacant since 2016 and lies inside a redevelopment area originally declared blighted in 1987 and redesignated in 2017. She said the current assessed value is about $215,000 and the applicant’s pro forma estimates a post‑project value of about $9.5 million; without TIF, the staff report concluded, “the project is not economically feasible.” Staff recommended the commission…