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Fitchburg council refers amended Bowman Plaza redevelopment with larger TIF ask
Summary
The council reviewed an amended development agreement for Bowman Plaza on Fish Hatchery Road and referred the matter for further processing after city consultants determined the project needs an increase in tax-increment financing support (from roughly $5.6 million to about $7 million) to remain viable.
The Fitchburg Common Council on June 9 reviewed an amended development agreement for the Bowman Plaza site on Fish Hatchery Road and referred the project for further processing after city consultants recommended boosting public financing.
Chad Brecklin, summarizing the meeting, said the amendment involves Bulma Plaza LLC and developer Rag Tag Ventures and would support a full redevelopment of the former commercial site. The proposal calls for a two-story parking structure with about 10,000 square feet of ground-level retail and roughly 275 apartment units above (a "five-over-two" configuration). Council materials and discussion described the building as the tallest planned in the city once completed, with demolition possibly beginning as early as next month.
The council previously negotiated about $5.6 million in tax-increment financing (TIF) support for the project. Brecklin said a new performance analysis by the city's public-finance consultants, Ellers, identified higher construction costs and concluded roughly $7 million in TIF assistance was warranted to maintain the project's feasibility. The analysis, as summarized in the meeting recap, also indicated the increased public support would reduce expected returns and make the development more dependent on public financing.
No final financing vote was recorded in the recap; the council treated the matter as a direct referral to continue negotiations and complete required approvals. The recap did not include a detailed vote tally nor full motion text.
What happens next: The referral means the plan and financing details will be finalized through the remaining public-review steps (Plan Commission review and subsequent council action). The council indicated further hearings and administrative steps remain before construction can begin.
