Aurora is moving toward establishing two new tax increment financing districts.
The City Council Tuesday will hold two public hearings on establishing two different TIF districts – one downtown for the historic Hobbs Building development, and the other for the former Copley Hospital development on Lincoln Avenue on the near East Side.
The city promised to try to qualify and establish the TIF districts as part of redevelopment agreements. The public hearings for both will be held during the Sept. 22 City Council meeting.
In a TIF district, as development takes place, the increase in assessed value creates more property taxes, which go into a fund to help pay for improvements on the property.
The TIF district downtown is for redevelopment of 2-4 N. River St., commonly known as the Hobbs Building, and 6-12 N. River St., the two buildings next door.
The Hobbs Building is a four-story brick building originally built in 1892 as a furniture store. It’s prominent location on the corner of River Street and Galena Boulevard and its distinct onion-shaped dome led to it becoming an architectural icon of downtown. It was home to the Crosby Sporting Goods store for many years.
As part of the redevelopment agreement with JH Real Estate Partners, the city agreed to two, separate $1.5 million incentives toward the $13 million project. The TIF district would raise the money for one of the incentives.
JH Partners would renovate the 126-year-old building, and the two buildings next to it along River, into a combination of commercial, retail and restaurant uses on the first floors, and apartments on the upper floors.
JH Partners would put in private equity, and raise private funding through federal and state tax credits.
The TIF district is called the Lake and Galena Tax Increment Financing District because it encompasses most of the block surrounded by Galena, Lake, New York Street and River Street. A chunk of it also moves south to take in the old Galena Hotel property.
In a separate item Tuesday, the council also is set to vote on removing the properties inside the Lake and Galena district from the overall Tax Increment Financing District 1, which is for the entire downtown. Properties cannot be in two TIF districts at once, so it will be removed to form its own, new TIF district.
Aurora has been moving in recent years to establish TIF districts tied to specific developments, rather than develop a TIF district for a larger area. That way, less property is tied up in TIF districts.
The TIF district on the entire downtown is set to expire soon, and the city will have several TIF districts on specific downtown development, rather than one big downtown TIF district.
The TIF district on the former Copley Hospital redevelopment site, which will be known as the Lincoln and Weston TIF District, also was anticipated in the redevelopment agreement between the city and Fox Valley Developers Inc. That company is in the midst of a total $128.5 million redevelopment of the seven buildings on the former Copley Hospital site.
Currently, the company is putting the final touches on the new East Aurora School District administration building, being remodeled into the former Nurses Building at Lincoln and Seminary Street, across from Bardwell Elementary School.
In both TIF public hearings, the council includes the redevelopment plan for both districts and the Eligibility Study and Report for both.
slord@tribpub.com
