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Commission hears staff preview of First Street cost escalation and proposed $6.1M urban renewal increase
Summary
City staff told the Historic Landmarks Commission that the Columbia Gateway Urban Renewal Agency plans to ask city council for a $6,100,000 increase in maximum indebtedness to complete the long-running First Street project and expand incentive grants for downtown rehabilitation; staff emphasized the change would not create new property taxes.
City staff used the Historic Landmarks Commission’s Nov. 20 meeting to brief commissioners on a pending Columbia Gateway Urban Renewal Agency request that city council approve a substantial amendment to increase the agency’s maximum indebtedness by $6,100,000.
Sandy Freund, senior planner, summarized the agency’s analysis and the First Street project’s history. “The agency is looking for support from city council to increase the maximum indebtedness or the spending authority of the Urban Renewal Agency... we will be requesting this increase, which is considered a substantial amendment to their renewal plan,” Freund said. She added the change “doesn’t result in new tax. This doesn’t result in a tax any additional tax to any property owner.”
Staff described First Street as a project that has experienced repeated scope changes and cost escalation over many years; engineers reported about $1,500,000 has been spent on design and planning alone. Commissioners noted that repeated stops and starts had added engineering costs and that construction is scheduled for the upcoming year.
Incentive program implications: Staff explained that if the agency’s indebtedness is increased, more money would flow into the urban renewal incentive program, potentially enlarging existing incentives and adding residential grant components. Examples described in the meeting included a $50,000 façade grant with a 50/50 match, a $10,000 residential incentive per dwelling to support upstairs residential conversion, and a $150,000 mixed-use grant for projects with both residential and commercial components.
Why it matters: An increase in maximum indebtedness would expand funding available for downtown façade and rehabilitation projects and could affect how historic properties are rehabilitated and reused. Staff said the change is intended to help complete stalled projects and to provide more robust incentives for private rehab work.
What’s next: Staff asked commissioners to monitor the city council process; the urban renewal amendment and related incentive-program changes will be considered by council in the coming months, and staff indicated notices were mailed to property owners in the district.
