For a Community Redevelopment Agency, budget time each year is for housekeeping and projecting.
That was the agenda Wednesday for the Downtown Investment Authority, which acts as the redevelopment agency for the three districts in the urban core’s Community Redevelopment Area: Downtown East, Northwest and Southside.
Board members realigned the 2015-16 CRA budget that expires Sept. 30, now that actual revenue and expenses are known, and prepared a 2016-17 budget based on projected revenue and expenses.
Funds for development expenses within the area are derived through a Tax Increment Fund District, which is the increase in property tax collections in a district that exceeds the amount of tax collected in a baseline year established along with the redevelopment area.
The increase in revenue from the three districts is placed into the Downtown Development Trust Fund and may be used only for infrastructure improvements, development, redevelopment and professionals services, such as studies and planning.
City Council President Lori Boyer advised the board that since capital improvement projects are involved in Downtown redevelopment, specific details such as designs and construction schedules must be provided.
“For the city to determine if money is properly spent, the DIA must describe the projects,” she said.
On another budget issue, last year, the DIA was granted by council a $1.655 million loan from the general fund to cover debt and incentive obligations approved by council that were not covered by tax increment funds.
The loan request for the 2016-17 budget will be $759,218.
“When the City Council gives money to the DIA, it’s characterized as a loan, not a gift,” said Assistant General Counsel Susan Grandin. “It has to paid back out of the 16-17 budget.”
The authority is scheduled to appear before the council Finance Committee this afternoon during the budget hearing to lay out its plan for administration, public parking and the redevelopment areas.
This morning, DIA staff was finalizing the revised projected financial plan to be presented to the committee.
In other business, the board approved removing from the city Capital Improvement Plan seven Downtown projects involving wayfaring signage and converting streets from one-way streets to two-way streets.
Wallace said only two of the projects were funded — in the fifth year of the five-year CIP — and the funding was for design only.
The board also approved expanding the scope of a future request for proposals for the so-called Sax Seafood development in LaVilla.
The city constructed on property it owns a building intended to be a restaurant, but it never went into business for lack of a private operator.
Redevelopment Manager Guy Parola said the city owns not only the parcel the building is on, but adjacent properties and abandoned right-of-way.
“We shouldn’t limit it to just the building and that property. The DIA controls the entire block,” Parola said.
The board approved adding the adjacent parcels to the intended request for proposals.
A $10,000 expenditure from the development fund was approved to change the one-way direction of a section of Market Street near St. John’s Cathedral to make it safer for pedestrians and more convenient for driving around the church.
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