Michigan City approves term sheet to support Tailwinds Business Park with up to $2 million loan
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Summary
The Redevelopment Commission approved a term sheet Nov. 17 to support the Tailwinds Business Park on about 14.25 acres south of the AMC theater; staff said $2 million is available as a forgivable loan and developers said the $30 million private project would include a public roadway and up to 11 flex buildings.
The Michigan City Redevelopment Commission voted unanimously Nov. 17 to accept a term sheet that would commit up to $2 million toward roadway work to enable the Tailwinds Business Park, a private development developers described as roughly a $30,000,000 investment on about 14.25 acres east of Meijer and south of the AMC theater.
The term sheet presented by developers asks the commission to provide a forgivable loan for the first phase — a public roadway that developers estimated would cost about $3.1 million. "You're gonna get a road for half the cost," the developer team summarized in their presentation; staff said the commission has $2,000,000 available to commit in staged payments tied to construction benchmarks. Skyler, the commission staff member who presented financial details, told the board, "I have confirmed that we do have $2,000,000 available."
Why it matters: developers said the road is intended to unlock a multi‑building business park that would create construction jobs and long‑term permanent positions, increase assessed value and generate increment for future TIF revenue. The presentation projected about 700 construction jobs across buildout and roughly 200 permanent jobs once the park is occupied.
How the deal would work: staff described a two‑phase approach in the term sheet. Phase one is the loan to build the roadway; phase two would involve creating a project‑specific TIF or similar financing mechanism to capture future increment and repay or support additional investment if the developer seeks more than the initial $2 million. Staff said the commission would work with the Economic Development Commission and the city council on subsequent financing steps.
Board action and next steps: after discussion and public questions about scope, IT and coordination with utilities, the commission voted to accept the term sheet and directed staff to continue drafting the redevelopment agreement and related documents for return to the commission (developers said they hoped to return with a full agreement on Dec. 8). If the redevelopment agreement proceeds, the loan would be paid in installments keyed to work completed on the roadway.
