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Princeton advances Business Development District ordinance to second reading; public hearing set for March 16
Summary
Council advanced Ordinance O‑26‑002, a proposal to create a Business Development District funded by a sales-tax increment to support downtown and business incentives, to a second reading and scheduled a March 16 public hearing; residents and business owners raised concerns about tax rates and outreach.
The Princeton City Council voted to advance an ordinance that would create a Business Development District (BDD) funded by a sales‑tax increment, setting a public hearing for March 16 and a publication date for the hearing notice of Feb. 25.
Michael Ziering, presenting the proposal, said the BDD is intended to use sales-tax proceeds to incentivize businesses to stay in or expand in Princeton and to support eligible downtown projects. "This ordinance ... is part of the necessary steps we need to propose the Business Development District," Ziering said, adding that specific tax-rate details would not be decided tonight and that staff will compile public feedback.
Residents and some business owners raised objections and asked for clearer outreach. Geraldine Woodley presented petition signatures and told the council that many business owners said they did not receive adequate information and opposed the proposed tax. "All the rest of the signatures I have here say no, we don't want it," Woodley said.
Council members acknowledged concerns about competitiveness with neighboring communities if the sales tax is set too high and emphasized the need for public education. A council member said published notice and additional face‑to‑face outreach would be used to reach business owners who may not use social media.
After public comment and discussion of the possible scope of eligible projects (grants to private storefront owners, remediation/demolition support, and smaller city projects), the council moved and seconded to advance Ordinance O‑26‑002 to a second reading. A roll call recorded 'Aye' responses from the members present.
The record includes timeline and outreach steps: the notice of the public hearing is to be published Feb. 25 with the hearing scheduled March 16. Staff said they will publish compiled feedback from outreach and that details on whether assistance will be grants or loans will be set by later committee policy.
The council did not set a specific tax rate at this meeting and directed staff to continue public outreach and provide details to the council ahead of the hearing.
