Tahlequah advisory committee sets 10–15 year guidance for River Center TIF and asks counsel to draft plan capped at $16M

A Tahlequah advisory committee on Tuesday reviewed a developer’s River Center proposal and voted to recommend that city council consider a tax‑increment financing (TIF) district with a term of not less than 10 years and not more than 15 years and a not‑to‑exceed cap of $16,000,000 for reimbursements and developer financing assistance.

Developer Glenn Ferguson described a mixed‑use plan that he said would include restaurants, retail, two hotel sites, an RV facility and roughly 200–300 multifamily units, and told the committee the site lacks sewer, water and stormwater infrastructure. "We would be putting up a 100% of the funds to put in the infrastructure," Ferguson said, noting the development’s viability depends on installing that utility backbone. Legal consultant Missy Westfall told the panel the project plan the developer provided included a $10.8 million infrastructure estimate and that setup costs (which she said are reimbursable if a TIF is formed) would be about $45,000 and are typically split with the city attorney. "It is $45,000 to set it up. I split it with your city attorney," Westfall said.

Committee members focused on three interrelated questions—how long a TIF term should run, how much total reimbursement the city should permit and what percentage of future tax increments would be diverted to the district. After debate about impacts on schools and other taxing jurisdictions, the committee adopted a recommendation, moved by Mister Baker and seconded by Mister Cook, that staff model scenarios using a term range of 10–15 years. "So we have not less than 10 and no more than 15," a member summarized during the motion.

On the dollar figure, the committee directed staff to model a not‑to‑exceed reimbursement amount of $16,000,000, which the developer had characterized as covering infrastructure plus an allowance for developer financing assistance depending on the final structure. The motion to use $16,000,000 for modeling and draft documents passed on roll call with committee members voting in favor.

City and county staff will now run impact scenarios showing how those parameters affect pay‑out timing and downstream revenues to the school district, library and other jurisdictions. City attorney JT Hammitt said staff need the committee’s range so they can produce a small number of draft documents rather than dozens of permutations. Westfall said she would prepare draft project‑plan language, model scenarios and an impact report for the next meeting.

The committee also heard from Telekop Public Works and the Grand River Dam Authority on utilities. Telekop general manager Kim Dorr said the site can be connected to the utility "Sub 3," which she described as having substantial remaining electrical capacity ("about 30‑something percent" used as of 2024), and said water service will likely come from the Teehee treatment plant; sewer improvements at the regional plant have recently increased capacity. Dorr and staff cautioned final buildability depends on engineering details and urged developers to design sewer lines to allow gravity connections for future growth.

County assessor Stephanie Teague said attorneys and city staff must provide project details for apportionment, and that the city would likely be responsible for required annual reporting to the state while the treasurer handles collection and distribution. Committee members requested models that show school‑enrollment scenarios and bond impacts so each jurisdiction can evaluate fiscal exposure.

The committee emphasized that the action was a request for staff work—no final TIF ordinance was adopted. Staff said the draft plan and impact modeling will return to the committee and then proceed to planning and zoning and two public hearings before city council. The committee agreed to add a public comment period to the next meeting agenda and set a follow‑up meeting on Jan. 22.