Redevelopment Commission approves industrial-park offering packet; bid opening set for July 29

The Tipton Redevelopment Commission voted June 24 to approve an offering packet for a recently acquired industrial-park property at the end of Industrial Drive and set a new bid-opening date of July 29.

Staff said the site is zoned I-2 (heavy industrial), which permits a broader range of manufacturing and heavy uses than the previously offered Achieva parcel, which had I-1 (light industrial) zoning restrictions. "This is heavy industrial, I-2, so it has the most all-encompassing zoning category which allows for a lot more things like heavy manufacturing," a staff member explained, noting utilities and flood-plain differences made the industrial park more attractive to potential industrial users than the Achieva site.

The offering packet allows buyers to purchase smaller portions of the site — for example, 10 acres rather than the full parcel — by splitting the property into parcels, staff said, which could create different schedules for any future TIF (tax-increment financing) starts. Staff also told commissioners that municipal advisors and legal counsel are working on a cleanup for at least one TIF district and that work could come back to the commission in July or August.

Commissioners debated parceling options and accepted the offering packet by voice vote. Staff said the packet otherwise tracks closely with the one used for the Achieva property and that the commission can open bids under the 30-day statutory requirement once the packet is posted.