By: Diane Benjamin
Normal has a total of 5 TIF districts.
See One Normal Place recap here: https://blnnews.com/2019/12/27/one-normal-plaza-tif/
See Uptown recap here: https://blnnews.com/2019/12/16/uptown-tif-facts/
Main/I55
TIF report: 19TIF06409531Main_I-55_1
This TIF originated in 2008. Last year it generated it’s first property tax increment – $10,190.
PDF page 8 shows unpaid project costs of $8,550,000. The TIF meeting minutes don’t reference these expenses. They do reflect the below:
Main/Osage
This TIF was started in 2008: 19TIF06409531Main_Osage_1
PDF page 8 – the Town borrowed $20,000,000 for this TIF. PDF page 10 shows $8,200,000 was used for a Fire Station. The TIF report shows only $10,923,590 has been spent.
More information is on PDF page 16. Next see PDF page 3 – Expenses were greater than income.
North Normal Warehouse
This TIF was started in 2013: 19TIF06409531North_Norarehouse_1
To date it has generated $1,180, $593 of that last year. That money was used to reimburse the General Fund for previous expenses that aren’t listed on the report. It does reference a redevelopment plan with no total cost.
PDF page 8 shows $9,455,957 yet to be paid.
PDF page 10 shows no private or public investment to date.
The annual TIF meeting didn’t take long – PDF page 14.
How did this property generate a tax increment with nothing happening at the site? The Assessor increased the value.
TIFs prove to me that council\ people who support them are not smarter than a 3 year old. A three year old sees a red hot burner on a stove, touches that pretty color and quickly learns not to touch it again. The mentioned council person sees that pretty colored drawing, touches it at the expense of the taxpayer and learns nothing. They just do it again and again and ….. So they are not smarter than a 3 year old.
TIFs are essentially a cash advance for developers and friends of government at the expense of taxpayers. These TIFs are a complete joke. There’s not even a semblance or veneer of economic development/activity associated with these TIFs. Another hotel? Really, Town of Normal? Haven’t we learned our lesson? I wonder what percentage of hotels are owned or unduly influenced by local government through TIFs and other “incentives”. If the private sector is not investing and occupancy rates are low, it should tell you something. Also, why get involved in such a diffcult industry that’s very capital intensive? The Main/Osage TIF is just the movement of government buildings…the equivalent of shuffling deck chairs on the Titanic. As for the North Normal Warehouse, I’d be curious to know what “interest” has been expressed and just how serious it is. And, how “partially” finished is that warehouse?
Year 1: Hotel owners/investors: “Gosh, we really need help. More supply is being introduced into the market but demand is flat/decreasing.”
Year 1: Blo-No liberals in local gov’t: “We need to build more hotels.
Year 2: Hotel owners/investors: “We need to slash property taxes. Our numbers are killing us and our occupancy rates are flat/decreasing.”
Year 2: Blo-No liberals in local gov’t: “You know, we could give $10 million and free land to build another new hotel. We really need it. What about a new shiny building with restaurant space on floor 1? The architecture firm said they’d rent a floor for a while if we pay them $1 million+ in fees.
Year 3: Hotel owners/investors: “Fire sale price on a hotel. We can’t make ends meet because the numbers are so bad and the market is saturated.
Year 3: Blo-No liberals in local gov’t: “You know what would we great? A new hotel, with a huge convention center. We could attract all these people to use these rooms. All the other open rooms are great for Homecoming at ISU once per year and we can just keep cutting their property taxes. Also, how about $2 million forr our favorite developer to build a new burger joint?!?!?”
*Facepalm*
If a TIF district is truly a good idea, one can issue TIF-backed revenue bonds, ie ‘These bonds will be repaid by the proceeds of the TIF district they are helping.’ To the best of my knowledge, all local bonds are general obligation bonds and none of the TIF districts are performing at level that would make them anything close to a good idea, at least from a ‘fiduciary responsibility to local citizens’ standpoint.
We need to elect more ‘Stans’ – not just in Normal, but Bloomington, the county, and state-wide.
“Fiduciary responsibility.” Koos and company have zero. They disrespect taxpayers and our money with their obscene spending. And to prove it yet again, they want to drive the town further into debt with an unnecessary underpass, an unnecessary new library, and who knows what else. Apparently $100,000,000.00 in debt isn’t deep enough.