On June 28th the Warrenton City Commission will consider establishing an Urban Renewal District which will encompass the boundaries of the city. URD's are most commonly used to address issues in areas that are considered blighted by redirecting property taxes paid by new property development once the district is established. The district can then issue bonds that would be paid back through those property taxes over a period of time.
The planners have proposed a multi-phase plan aimed directly at issues that have plagued Warrenton and most particularly the old town area for many years. The plan calls for improvements to sewers, streets, sidewalks, in the old town area and some big improvements to the Warrenton Marina including replacing ancient docks and floats, improved parking and restroom facilities. Power goes underground in this plan to help keep those winter outages to a minimum and those who step up to build new buildings will get help with all the infrastructure which can include sewers to landscaping.
The proposal has two items I particularly like. One is that this sunsets in 2027. It doesn't go on and on. That's good news for the rest of the taxing districts in the long term because once the bonds are paid off this special district ends and that money (estimated at around $10-million)
gets funneled into those districts. The second, if the bonds are paid off early then the plan calls for the District to end immediately. It is difficult for other taxing districts to sit back and wait for this pay-off but that only happens if this URD is established to provide the incentive to developers to come on board, and established businesses in the district will be eligible for low interest loans to improve facades to beautify the city and make their businesses more attractive.
The cumulative value of these improvements over the 20 year life of the plan is conservatively estimated at $75-million dollars
The big player in this is Clatsop County because the North Coast Business Park is included in the district boundaries. The County isn't happy because they just sold a chunk of land to Costco and an associated developer for $8-million and were looking forward to the property taxes that would bring. There are a significant number of homes going up over the next five years as well.
The County may accept a compromise. The Warrenton URD plan focuses specifically on the
old town area and the Marina area. It also states that anywhere within the district where new development occurs the district would help with infrastructure improvements to encourage that new development along. That statement would be the foundation for an understanding between the new URD and Clatsop County. It remains for reasoned discussion to take place.
The County, The Port of Astoria, The Sunset Empire Transportation District, and all the rest of the numerous taxing districts involved with this decision would do well to work with Warrenton to get this plan established and operational as soon as possible.
There is absolutely no mystery here. This is yet another planners raid on basic service's budgets.
ReplyDeleteAnd of course, as usual, perpetrated under false pretenses of not doing so and misrepresentations of nearly all aspects of this widely abused funding scheme.
There is no "sunset".
The claim that it will is one of many tactics to get people to "like" the plan.
In truth this Urban Renewal will unfold like many others. Right out of the gate the TIF (Tax Increment Financing) revenue will be insufficient and not allow the needed borrowing capacity so new formula will be cooked up. Then the estimates for the various projects will all be short requiring many more millions.
In a couple years the City Council will increase the debt capacity just as Wilsonville recently increased theirs by $33 million.
All told it will indeed "go on and on". That's NOT good news for the rest of the taxing districts in the long term because it will take many years longer till the bonds are paid off.
This is all so predictable and the League of Oregon Cities knows it well.
In just a few short years Warrenton will be asking, begging and threatening the voters for a new operating levy to fund basic services. Just as Wilsonville did without mention of their Urban Renewal vanquishing of basic services budgets.
Here we have a new fantasy, "if the bonds are paid off early" that takes the UR whoppers to a new level. This is the whopper trend as municipalities follow the LOC play book.
Besides over budget projects and increased debt capacity, granting tax breaks in the district will further the time this UR will need to return the property taxes to basic services.
Modeled after other cities such as Tigard's recent con job this will likely move forward. Tigard voters were asked to vote for a 20 year $22 million Urban Renewal plan. The small print at the time forecasted the need for $39 million and 28 years to pay it off.
Watch out for this official maleficence.
The Tigard City attorney went so far as to say in a public hearing that "all of the money would come from development generated by the UR plan, which would not otherwise happen."
Tigard's plan would immediately start diverting property taxes from 200 acres of existing development and do so for at least 30 years. The attorney could not have been more dishonest.
Beware Warrenton citizens. You are about to be lied to across the board.
If it is desired that your city spend tax dollars to "invest" in a makeover have a vote on a new bond measure to fund it, then make sure no liars are managing the effort and projects.
What would we do without the naysayers of the county guarding us?
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