Property owners in downtown Naperville shouldn’t have to foot a larger part of the tax bill for a new five-story parking deck and maintenance services area, City Council members agreed Monday.
The council met in a workshop session to discuss how to divvy up the expenses for downtown maintenance and a planned $6.7 million parking deck.
Earlier this month, the council passed ordinances creating two special-service areas for funding, but it delayed decisions on apportioning the cost between the city and downtown business property owners. But the council members agreed Monday that the city and the owners should share equally the costs.
Previously, the city wanted the downtown business property owners to fund two-thirds of the cost of the deck through a proposed special-service area property tax. But the council members reconsidered in the face of complaints from members of the Central Area Naperville Development Organization.
In a letter to the council, the group wrote, “Funding for long-term, multimillion-dollar infrastructure projects can no longer be borne principally by a small group of businesses and expect sustained success.”
The group noted that the deck is to benefit and support future development in downtown, but current businesses are being asked to pay the price.
“Not all the development in downtown is in place,” said Bill Esser, CANDO president. “It makes it difficult not to overburden the businesses that are there now.”
Business property owners also want the city to pick up more, or at least half, of the costs for such downtown services as snow removal, litter pickup, pressure washing of sidewalks, brick sidewalk repairs, and tree and shrub trimming and lighting.
They also want a 50-50 split with the city in funding a $205,000 package of services, Esser said. Those include $150,000 for marketing the downtown, more maintenance in the evening and better holiday lighting.
Council members agreed in principal with funding 50 percent of all the items in the package except for the $150,000 for marketing. They were split 4-4 on whether marketing downtown benefits the entire community.
Council members suggested alternative methods to finance the deck and other downtown projects. Councilman Dick Furstenau wants the city to lease commuter parking on the top two stories of the deck, an idea that appealed to other members.
Councilman Kevin Gallaher suggested that the city study the available land downtown to determine what could be sold for development.
“We should take property not on the tax rolls and put it on the tax rolls,” Gallaher said. “If we lay a significant burden of taxes on our local business owners, we’ll see more chain stores … and in a recession some accountant will crunch the numbers and say, `Let’s get rid of Naperville.’ We’ll have empty storefronts downtown.”
The council will hold a public hearing on the proposed special service tax levy on Dec. 5 and is scheduled to vote on it Dec. 19.
