Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Fergus Falls council debates limits for TIF, splits over housing exceptions
Summary
At a Fergus Falls City Council meeting, members reviewed a draft tax-increment financing (TIF) policy. Councilors signaled support for retaining an 8-year cap on economic-development TIFs but were split on housing (proposals ranged from 12 to 15 years or none); staff will revise the draft to reflect the discussion.
Mayor Hicks opened the discussion by outlining the city's TIF record: "In total, there's been, 45 projects, 6 of which are currently open," he said, adding that 37 have been decertified and returned to the tax rolls and that two were never certified (one apartment project on the Shopko parking lot will not move forward).
City staff told councilors that statute sets maximum durations for common district types: economic development up to eight years, housing up to 25 years and redevelopment up to 25 years. "Economic development TIF ... is typically ... manufacturing, warehousing, R and D facilities," a staff member said while explaining how redevelopment TIF targets blight and gave the Mill Hotel and the former Checkers site as recent redevelopment examples.
The bulk of the meeting focused on whether to embed specific time limits and other rules in a written TIF policy.…
Already have an account? Log in
Subscribe to keep reading
Unlock the rest of this article — and every article on Citizen Portal.
- Unlimited articles
- AI-powered breakdowns of topics, speakers, decisions, and budgets
- Instant alerts when your location has a new meeting
- Follow topics and more locations
- 1,000 AI Insights / month, plus AI Chat
