Kewanee council approves TIF support for downtown building renovations

Kewanee — The City Council on Dec. 9 approved two tax‑increment financing agreements aimed at accelerating renovations to downtown buildings owned by John Cernovich. The council authorized an amended $75,000 agreement for improvements adjacent to Cerno’s and a separate $61,330.49 agreement for a building north of CoCo’s.

Councilmembers said the funds are intended to help property owners move forward with renovations that support downtown revitalization. Cernovich submitted TIF applications requesting upfront payments rather than a full payback through future incremental tax receipts; City Manager Gary Bradley told council staff typically structures payouts with a small upfront amount and/or annual tax‑increment disbursements, and asked for direction on the preferred approach.

“The owner was looking for upfront payment to help advance these buildings so that he could continue with more renovations,” the meeting record states. Councilmember Colomer moved to approve Bill 24‑130 with the amended $75,000 amount; Councilmember Faber seconded and the motion passed 4‑0. The council later approved Bill 24‑131, amending the Cerno Properties agreement to $61,330.49 on a 4‑0 vote (motion by Colomer, second by Komnick).

Downtown TIF agreements typically allow the city to reimburse eligible building improvements from future increases in property tax collections in the designated TIF district. The council did not specify detailed payout timing in the meeting record; Bradley said staff sought direction on whether to front‑load payments or rely on annual increments.

The ordinances were adopted with unanimous council votes. The agreements are expected to be finalized following the administrative steps required by the city.