Within the debate over the growth and redevelopment of Old Town Louisville with the arrival of FasTracks is the curious growth and development of the Louisville Revitalization Commission.
On November 8, Louisville City Council will vote on giving the LRC authority to manage an estimated $77 million in projected tax revenue over the next 25 years, with a particular emphasis on Tax Increment Financing to fund infrastructure improvements that will entice developers to partner with the city on a range of projects.
Louisville resident Ty Gee has listed detailed concerns over this whole process at www.preservelouisville.org. What caught my eye is how the LRC is not elected, but appointed and therefore not directly accountable to the citizens, plus they will have authority to initiate condemnation and they're not bound by the city's ethics ordinance.
And the scope of the Hwy 42 Redevelopment Area has grown inexplicably to include, in particular, the Pow Wow Grounds in northeast Louisville. Markel Homes is already well into the approval process for a development here, why the need to suddenly include them into a program that uses blight to justify tax-financed improvements to entice development? They're already there! More on this as I ask around, and please comment.
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2 comments:
This is blatant abuse of the TIF concept. Since when is an open field considered blight??? While this provides money locally, it takes it away from the county, which has to find the money elsewhere, ie. taxes. Urban renewal should be used only for its intended purpose, not as a way to promote development on the back of tax payers with no oversight or accountability. Louisville is in trouble because of shortsighted development plans made in the past, coupled with a selfish outlook on revenue sharing. You reap what you sow.
Frank Phillips
I won't disagree that Louisville may be reaping what it has sown, but here is some fact checking: Markel's North End project applies some mixed use concepts from the overall Hwy. 42 study, as a matter of comprehensive planning. However, this "open field" area was not included in the Hwy. 42 blight study, it has not been added since, and it has not, in fact, been designated blighted. Therefore, TIF is not available for abuse or otherwise on the Markel land. Also, nationally, TIF is used to stimulate economic development in all sorts of settings. Even though Colorado authority to use tax increments is limited to urban renewal, the "TIF concept" is to define the base increment in a manner that does not deprive existing tax authorities of their fair share, regardless of whether the setting is blighted, greenfield, or otherwise.
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