The City Commission will not take up the TIF extension until after the election

The City Commission will not vote on extending TIF 97 until after Election Day. That’s the conclusion of a memo written by Mayor Amy Shamroe and attached to the packet for today’s City Commission meeting, which has an extensive agenda that also includes items related to FishPass, the city’s homeless situation, the Hall Street housing development and a potential new sidewalk bridge on Eastern Avenue.

The Traverse City Downtown Development Authority (DDA) voted in August to approve “Moving Downtown Forward,” the name for a proposed 30-year extension of TIF 97 that has been in the works for years. As Shamroe wrote in her memo, the “normal process for a TIF plan after adoption by the DDA Board” is for the City Commission to review the plan, schedule a public hearing to include community input, and ultimately vote on it whether the plan should be accepted.

However, because the Nov. 5 vote includes two proposals that would amend city charter and alter the approval process for TIF plans, Shamroe wrote that the City Commission “will not take action on the Moving Downtown Forward plan until after the November 2024 election.” “ ” This decision may mean that if the two charter amendments pass, the city and DDA may be required to put “Moving Downtown Forward” to a public vote. In such a situation, it could take another year for the matter to come to a vote.

On the other hand, there is the question of whether the TIF-related changes are even legal, which could put the ball back in the City Commission’s hands after the election, regardless of how city residents vote.

Commissioners will discuss the matter at tomorrow’s meeting, scheduled for 7 p.m. at the Governmental Center.

Also on the meeting agenda:

>Commissioners will vote on “an agreement to accept a $1 million grant from the Michigan Department of Energy, Great Lakes and Environment (EGLE) for the demolition of the Union Street Dam and the construction of a new low-water and arch labyrinths should be approved.” Weir and natural bypass channel for FishPass.”

>Board members will consider “approving a two-year agreement with Jubilee House to provide day shelters” for the city’s population experiencing homelessness. If the agreement is approved, the city will provide Jubilee House $40,000 per year for the next two fiscal years to pay for services.

>Commissioners will discuss “authorizing the release of a restrictive covenant recognizing that the Workforce Housing Payment-in-Lieu-of-Taxes (PILOT) agreement for 125 and 145 Hall Street will be terminated as the Project cannot receive financing.” Developer Innovo had asked the city for a PILOT agreement to incorporate a workforce housing component called Godfrey into its Hall Street project. Innovo notified the city late last month that it was “unable to allocate adequate funding through the Workforce Housing PILOT program for the development or rehabilitation of the properties by September 30, 2024, the deadline specified in the Restrictive Covenant.” receive”. Therefore, the project will continue to move forward, but there will be no provision for housing workers.

>The board will consider a request from Commissioner Tim Werner “for the City Commission to direct the City Manager to install a sidewalk on the south side of Eastern Avenue between Milliken Drive and Peninsula Drive.” In an Oct. 3 memo, Werner wrote that neighbors have been asking about this walkway for several years. Due to several factors, the issue kept falling by the wayside, he explained. Werner requested that “for the safety and comfort of pedestrians and at the request of neighbors for many years” the sidewalk should be built “with a targeted completion date of May 1, 2025.”