Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Housing Urban Renewal topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Pella Council approves Prairie Ridge West urban renewal plan, authorizes development agreement with PRD 2 LLC
Summary
The City of Pella adopted an urban renewal plan and approved a development agreement intended to enable construction of a 90‑lot workforce housing subdivision. The developer may be reimbursed up to $4.5 million through a 15‑year tax increment financing arrangement; staff stressed a 33% LMI allocation requirement under state law.
Pella’s City Council on unanimous roll calls adopted the Prairie Ridge West urban renewal plan and approved a development agreement with PRD 2 LLC that staff said will support a 90‑lot residential subdivision intended to provide workforce housing.
City staff presented the plan as the first step necessary to offer economic development incentives and described it as consistent with the city’s comprehensive plan and a recent county housing assessment that identified nearly 1,300 additional housing units needed in the Pella sub‑market through 2035. Planning and Zoning had previously reviewed and unanimously recommended the proposal.
Under the development framework presented, the developer would invest in public infrastructure for the subdivision — staff cited up to $4.5 million in streets, stormwater and related work — and the city would rebate a portion of the incremental property taxes generated by new homes over the next 15 years to reimburse the developer. Staff explained that, because Iowa law requires dedicating a portion of increment to low‑ and moderate‑income (LMI) housing when projects are not exclusively low‑ or moderate‑income, roughly 33% of the increment in the staff example would be set aside for LMI housing; in that scenario, $4.5 million in developer reimbursement would require roughly $6 million in TIF receipts over 15 years.
Councilors asked procedural and policy questions, including limits on the number of TIF districts and alignment with strategic priorities. Staff said Iowa places no statutory limit on the number of TIF districts but emphasized that districts must conform to comprehensive plans and the city’s strategic goals. The council closed the required public hearings and approved the urban renewal resolution, the related ordinance to form the TIF district (first reading noted), and the development agreement by recorded votes.
The agreement and plan aim to encourage workforce housing in Pella. Staff recommended, and council accepted, standard safeguards including unanimous review of individual housing applications by a three‑party committee (city, developer and a housing representative) to confirm design and sale price criteria that aim to achieve workforce pricing.
Next steps: the ordinance creating the TIF district will proceed through its remaining readings and the city will execute the development agreement with PRD 2 LLC.
