Coldwater panel recommends Brownfield district to fund Western Meadows infrastructure
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Summary
City and county officials recommended that Coldwater City Council establish a Brownfield district and approve a $508,115 plan to capture local property tax increment from 17 parcels to reimburse infrastructure work at the Western Meadows residential development.
Coldwater officials on [date] recommended that the City Council establish a Brownfield Redevelopment district and approve a plan that would capture local property tax increments to reimburse infrastructure work for the Western Meadows housing development.
Connor Zook, a consultant with Triterra, told the reconstituted Brownfield Redevelopment Authority that the plan identifies $493,115 in eligible activities and infrastructure improvements, plus $15,000 in preparation costs, for a total plan value of $508,115. “There’s $493,115 in eligible activities and infrastructure improvements,” Zook said, and he cautioned that the plan’s tables are based on 2024 taxable values and may need updating before formal approval.
Under the proposal, the authority would capture incremental increases in local property taxes on an identified set of parcels (initially described as seven parcels that will expand to 17 after a split) and use that captured increment to reimburse the city’s upfront capital spending on the Western Meadows entrance and related work. Zook said the plan assumes school operating and state education taxes are pass-throughs and therefore not capturable; only local property-tax increments would be retained for reimbursement.
Using the 2024 values in the plan, Zook said the city would be reimbursed in about seven years but acknowledged updated taxable values could extend that capture period. A participant noted the county’s estimated forgone revenue in the plan is about $22,000; staff confirmed that figure and said the plan can be amended or extended if necessary to meet reimbursement goals.
Officials listed parcels and subdivisions to be included around Western Meadows, naming Amberview, Clay Street, North Shore Drive, Candlewood Court and Shoshone Pass among the areas identified for capture. Staff said including parcels with recently completed homes shortens the payback period and helps “prime the pump” for later phases of Western Meadows.
The plan does not require included homes to be income-qualified, and staff said because this draft captures only local taxes there will be no reporting requirement to the state under the current setup. Staff also said Coldwater does not currently assess a Brownfield administrative fee and the plan does not include a pass-through to reimburse staff time.
After discussion, the authority voted by voice to recommend that the City Council establish the district and approve the plan; the group then directed staff to schedule and publish notices for the required public hearing before the council. The authority also moved and approved a nomination to elect Jeff Budd as the chair of the reconstituted body; Budd accepted the appointment.
Next steps: staff will update tables as needed with current taxable values, publish required hearing notices and present the plan to City Council for the public hearing and formal vote.
