The Rexburg City Council on Nov. 18 voted to approve Resolution 2025-12, accepting an eligibility study that recommends creating an urban renewal district covering roughly 840 acres on West Highway 20.

Brad Kramer of Perspective Planning Consulting told the council the study reviewed 15 statutory criteria and found nine met, with the primary issues tied to defective or outmoded street layouts, an unusually high number of Highway 33 access points and faulty lot patterns and ownership diversity that make coordinated redevelopment difficult. Kramer said those conditions are likely to slow or impair sound growth unless public infrastructure investments are made.

Kramer noted that the study area’s current base assessed value is roughly $28 million, and adding this district would put the city’s total urban renewal base value at about 4% of assessed value, well under the statutory 10% limit. He cautioned the city that some major infrastructure items — widening twelfth west, sewer pressure lines and canal crossings — will require substantial public investment and may require public-private partnerships because developers cannot absorb all costs.

Council members asked how recent state-level scrutiny of urban renewal might affect the project; Kramer said he was not aware of imminent legislation that would prevent the district and said the study’s documented criteria should stand up to review. Council members also discussed eminent domain limits (which Kramer said urban renewal agencies no longer possess) and how the urban renewal board and city coordinate on project lists, prioritization and financing.

The council approved the resolution by voice vote after discussion. Staff said next steps include developing the formal plan and a prioritized project list, a process that Kramer estimated would take roughly 18 months to complete.