Peoria council approves Northwoods Mall and Adams Liberty TIF plans after lengthy briefing and debate

Peoria City Council voted Feb. 10 to approve a package of tax-increment financing measures, including ordinances establishing the Northwoods Mall TIF and approving the Adams Liberty TIF along with amendments to the Warehouse District and downtown conservation redevelopment project areas.

Assistant City Manager Kimberly Richardson spent substantial time briefing council on how TIFs work, saying, "tax increment financing is a tool that is used as a way for us to have redevelopment occur in areas that typically are not able to generate enough interest from the private sector for redevelopment." Richardson explained the mechanism: the city captures increases in equalized assessed value (EAV) within a district and uses the incremental revenue for infrastructure and redevelopment; she emphasized that those increment dollars are not drawn from the general fund.

The council discussion probed the rationale, rules and safeguards. Richardson told members the city hired outside consultants to perform the required statutory "but-for" evaluation and that the Northwoods area showed "significant deterioration due to inadequate infrastructure" and other factors that support a TIF approach. She said typical guardrails include redevelopment agreements, annual reimbursement schedules and a common practice of limiting TIF reimbursements to roughly 50% of a project's costs (the exact share varies by agreement).

Opposition and caution were voiced. Councilmember Carmona said she has "subject objections to TIFs in general, especially in a very highly taxed environment," warning that diverting increment could reduce funding available to public safety and other taxing bodies. Councilmember Kelly raised technical concerns about how EAV and increment are calculated and historical reporting, asking the manager for clarifying data. Mayor Rita Ali asked the city manager to have the finance director provide council with historical EAV information "this week" so members can assess trends.

City leadership defended the tool’s local benefits. The city manager noted the Northwoods area contributes a substantial share of the city’s sales tax and said improvements that increase sales-tax generation help fund operations such as police and fire, addressing concerns that a TIF would starve public-safety budgets.

Votes and next steps Council voted on the Northwoods Mall items (agenda 26-043 A–C) separately; each motion passed with one nay (Councilmember Carmona). Council then considered item 26-044 (Adams Liberty TIF plan and related amendments to existing redevelopment areas) and approved items A–E, again with a single dissent. The council record shows the motions were moved and seconded and that each roll-call vote recorded Carmona as the sole nay.

Several councilmembers noted that redevelopment agreements and development proposals remain under negotiation. The city manager said the specific redevelopment agreement will return to council for approval after negotiations with the selected developer are finished; no firm date was set.

Context and finances The consent agenda approved earlier in the meeting included a separate, unrelated contract renewal: a three-year maintenance and support contract with Esri Inc. for the citywide GIS platform at $90,300 per year ($270,900 total for the contract term).

What comes next Staff will proceed with negotiations on redevelopment agreements (RDAs) for projects that intend to use the Northwoods TIF. Council requested additional data on EAV trends from the finance director to inform future discussions on TIF use and impacts. Formal project RDAs, including any developer reimbursements or bond proposals, will return to council for separate action.