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Council debates using TIF increment to boost Heart of Ellsworth funding
Summary
City staff and council discussed redirecting part of Beckwith Hill TIF increments to downtown programming; Twyla Fisher proposed an $18,802 FY27 revenue bump and staff suggested raising municipal support for Heart of Ellsworth from $25,000 toward $40,000–$45,000, pending TIF and district rules.
Twyla Fisher, Ellsworth’s director of economic development, told the council she ran a projection that increases Beckwith Hill TIF revenue for FY 2027 by about $18,802 using a 2.5% growth assumption; she recommended placing that increment into the econ-dev professional-services line to cover items such as downtown wayfinding signage and small downtown investments.
"Based on the 2 and a half percent projected increase that she uses for TIF applications, I just ran a projection model for what FY '27 would be for Beckwith Hill ... it actually bumped it up $18,802 for this coming fiscal year," Fisher said.
Council and staff discussed the mechanics and constraints of TIF accounts: unallocated TIF money can be earmarked for downtown initiatives or ported to a future downtown TIF district, but some transfers are limited by development-plan caps and multi‑year accounting. Staff flagged 2030 — when an older district expires — as a critical reconciliation point and said new rules will likely require most TIF extensions to fund affordable housing or transit-oriented development.
The manager and staff suggested increasing municipal support to Heart of Ellsworth from the longstanding $25,000 toward as much as $40,000–$45,000 using a mix of general-fund dollars and Beckwith Hill TIF increments, while reserving the option to commit larger sums only after a new downtown TIF district is activated.
Dory Perret, bookkeeper and accountant for Heart of Ellsworth, spoke during public comment and provided financial outcomes the group says it has produced. "Since 2016, Heart of Ellsworth has generated over 1,100,000 in downtown investment, leveraging just 84,000 in municipal funding," Perret said, adding that the organization has secured more than $646,000 in grant funding and contributed thousands of volunteer hours.
Council directed staff to refine line-item proposals and the change log and to present specific options at the next budget workshop, including an immediate modest increase (to be covered partly by unallocated Beckwith Hill funds) and staged increases if a new downtown district is approved. No funds were committed at the meeting.
