Homewood’s Downtown TOD TIF District turned 7 this year, and village officials say that may be too old to sustain several proposed redevelopment projects, so the village is exploring the possibility of carving out one section to create a new district.
Homewood Economic and Community Development Director Angela Mesaros said the age of the Downtown Transit Oriented Development (TOD) Tax Increment Financing (TIF) district is a consideration because it has 16 years left before it expires.
The area in red shows the boundaries of the proposed new
TIF district. (Provided graphic/Village of Homewood)
Mesaros said that might not be enough time to generate the funds needed to support the projects the village has in mind for the area.
At its Sept. 10 meeting, the Board of Trustees approved the initial step in creating what informally is being called the Harwood TIF District. The board hired Ryan LLC to study the feasibility of the proposed district and to create a redevelopment plan.
The new district currently is within the north portion of the Downtown TOD TIF district. The boundaries of the new district, if created, would be from Harwood Road east to Dixie Highway and Ridge Road north to the Dixie Highway viaduct.
The new district would include 30 parcels, several of them high priorities for redevelopment or improvement.
- The Village Hall parking lot at 2024 Chestnut Road.
- The Matrix Building at 2052-2066 Ridge Road.
- The Harwood commuter lot.
- The office building at 17900 Dixie Highway.
- St. John Neumann Parish’s school building.
- The village hall campus area on Chestnut Road and Dixie Highway.
Tax increment finance districts (TIF) generate money by freezing the equalized assessed valuation (EAV) of property within the district at the time the district is created. For the next 23 years, the property tax paid up to the base level gets distributed to taxing bodies as usual, but any increase in EAV is collected in the TIF district fund for use in supporting redevelopment projects.
for redevelopment projects. (Provided graphic/Village of Homewood)
The village currently has a letter of intent from HCF Homewood II to redevelop the village hall parking lot and has had interest from developers for 2052-2066 Ridge Road. The partners recently finished redeveloping the former Triumph Building site, now The Hartford at the southwest corner of Ridge Road and Martin Avenue.
The village plans to build a new water tower on the site of the former library building at 17900 Dixie.
The former St. Joseph School on the St. John Neumann Parish property closed in 2017.
The village would also seek to use TIF funds for improvements to village properties, including village hall, the police and fire departments and the commuter lot.
The first phase of the project will cost $15,000. If Ryan determines the district is not feasible, phase 2, which includes creating the redevelopment plan, will not proceed. Phase 2 would cost $17,500 plus a $4,875 contingency fee to cover unforeseen costs. The total cost of the study should not exceed $37,375.