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Huntsville holds public hearing on proposed TIF 9; administration outlines $220 million project plan including Von Braun Center expansion
Summary
City officials presented the proposed Tax Increment Financing district (TIF 9) covering central downtown and nearby areas, describing a five‑project plan with a $220 million public investment cap and projected new property tax base. No vote was taken; certification and intergovernmental steps are scheduled in late May and June.
HUNTSVILLE — The Huntsville City Council heard a detailed presentation May 14 on a proposed tax increment financing district, tentatively named TIF 9, that would center on the city’s central business district and nearby Low Mill area.
Shane Davis, director of urban economic development, told the council the administration’s project plan would capture new tax growth inside a boundary of roughly 3,089 acres and authorize up to $220 million in qualifying public investments. Davis said state law requires the city to capture only new tax increments and that existing millage rates would not be changed for current property owners.
Davis described five projects the administration included in the plan: an expansion of the Von Braun Center’s North Hall (estimated $200 million); the North Huntsville BeltLine Greenway (about $5 million); a new Mill Creek Park developed with U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Huntsville Housing Authority (about $5 million); Low Avenue improvements to support the new Huntsville Middle School (about $5 million); and renovations to the former federal courthouse (about $5 million). The administration’s modeling, he said, anticipates creating $15 million to $17 million annually in new property tax base once projects are completed.
In response to public commenters, Davis said Mill Creek is already under construction and that phase 1 work is visible on the site; additional financing and closing work for later phases is underway. When residents asked whether the plan prioritizes the Von Braun Center over affordable housing, Davis acknowledged the concern and pointed to other program elements—such as the HUD partnership on Mill Creek and ongoing work by the city’s affordability manager—while repeating that the projects were chosen to balance catalytic downtown investments and fairness to tax recipients, including Madison County and Huntsville City Schools.
Council members pressed on technical points: how Low Mill (a parcel partially in the county) would be treated; how captured taxes are divided; and whether federally funded projects (the SkyBridge and Penhook Creek work) would be affected. Davis said carve‑outs were included where required by law and that federally funded projects would remain separate and unaffected by TIF capture.
No action was taken at the hearing. Davis said the administration will provide the final project plan to required tax recipients, including Huntsville City Schools and the Madison County Commission, and that the council could certify a final plan on May 28; the county will then consider approval and the council could act on establishing the TIF as soon as June 11. Council members and residents will have additional meetings with tax recipients as required by statute.
The hearing drew public comment from several residents, including Joy Johnson, who urged greater commitment to affordable housing and asked why the city’s affordable‑housing manager was not present, and Darren Vraga, who asked why the Von Braun Center expansion appears to take a large share of proposed funds rather than transit or housing projects. Davis and council members addressed each concern during the Q&A portion of the hearing.
Next steps: the administration will circulate the final plan to statutorily required tax recipients and return to the council with timelines for certification and subsequent votes; no formal TIF district will be created until those steps and required votes are complete.
