Parkville aldermen and city staff engaged in dialog with a candidate for aldermen about economic development incentives in the Creekside development last week during a meeting of the board of aldermen.
At the Tuesday, Feb. 19 meeting, the board gave final approval to the new Meadows at Creekside Community Improvement District (CID). The CID covers a residential development within the larger Creekside development, and does not create a sales tax. Instead, the CID proposal includes a special assessment for each completed apartment unit and single-family home built within the district. Money collected will fund public improvements — including covering costs previously incurred by the failed neighborhood improvement districts in the area.
According to the staff report prepared by director of community development Stephen Lachky, listed project costs — which total about $10.5 million — include $4.8 million in NID costs.
Parkville resident Weston Coble, who is running against Phil Wassmer for the Ward 1 alderman’s seat in the April election, had some questions before the approval about this CID and other potential upcoming economic development incentives.
Lachky said an application for tax increment financing (TIF) had also been filed and a public hearing was scheduled for Tuesday, Feb. 26 regarding the application (see related story). The application requests payment in lieu of taxes (PILOT), economic activity taxes, hotel sales tax rebates, establishment of additional CIDs and a transportation development district (TDD).
Coble also asked aldermen if there were any concerns that the number of special incentives requested would harm future municipal tax revenues for regular city services. An overabundance of special tax incentives could also harm revenues for the school district and other taxing entities, he said.
City administrator Joe Parente said those were questions the board would consider during the public hearing and during the city’s analysis of the requests. That was the next step in the process, he said.
“The developer has made the request for assistance and the city and the TIF commission will be sorting through all those issues,” Parente said.
Mayor Nan Johnston said ensuring the incentives would not harm the city’s tax base was the purpose of the analysis the city ordered from Springsted in recent weeks.
“We understand the developer has to make a certain amount of profit; we don’t intend to let the developer make an excessive amount of profit and we do want to make sure our basic city services are covered as well as having an overall direct benefit to our community,” Johnston said.
Coble asked if the Springsted report had been received, and Johnston said she was unsure if the final report had yet been issued.
Parente said the full report was not a part of the hearing scheduled for Feb. 26, but would be considered by the board of aldermen should the TIF pass through the TIF commission for approval by the full board.
Also at the meeting, the board gave preliminary approval to a new policy instituting a permitting process for filming in city parks. Previously, no process was in place for production companies wishing to film documentaries, television or films on city park property or in the Parkville Nature Sanctuary. The policy was unanimously approved by the Community Land and Recreation Board (CLARB) earlier this month. Final approval is expected at the Tuesday, March 5 meeting.