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Committee reviews Astor East and Astor West urban renewal priorities and TIF projections
Summary
Staff explained how Astoria's two urban renewal districts use TIF revenues, projected about $325,000 new tax revenue for Astor East this year, and warned Astor West is near its maximum indebtedness; the committee agreed to include both districts' budgets for consideration.
City Manager Spence explained the purpose of urban renewal/TIF and the Development Commissionpriorities for the districts, with housing ranked first, followed by infrastructure and economic vitality projects. "You hear TIF every once in a while, which is tax increment financing," Spence said while describing the statutory basis and typical uses for the districts (professional services, capital outlay and grants).
Spence said Astor East is projected to bring in approximately $325,000 in new tax revenue this year and currently has about $7,000,000 of taxing authority remaining before it reaches a statutory debt ceiling; Astor West, established earlier, is close to its maximum indebtedness and is no longer generating new tax increment. He pointed to recent uses of funds including a $164,000 grant for Liberty Theater and EPA-funded cleanup work at Heritage Square. Committee members asked about the split between contingency, capital outlay and ending fund balances; staff said allocations followed past patterns and the Development Commission will consider a formal policy.
The committee moved to include the Astor East and Astor West budgets in its work and voted to approve that inclusion by voice vote. No final Development Commission approvals were made during the session; staff said future meetings would set priorities and project-level access to those funds.
