Enid-Garfield County Metropolitan Area Planning Commission recommended the termination of three Tax Increment Finance districts and the creation of one new district during a meeting Monday evening.
The three TIF districts recommend for termination were No. 2, 3 and 6, which are the Oklahoma Ethanol Economic Development Project Plan, the Orion Ethanol Economic Development Project Plan and the Northstar Canola Project, respectively. In all three instances, the economic development projects have not come to fruition. The recommendation will go before the mayor and board of commissioners.
A TIF district proposal was approved to fund the reconstruction of a portion of 66th.
Increment District No. 7 will involve Transportation Partners and Logistics, which has a logistics center for wind turbine equipment on the northeast corner of 66th and Chestnut.
Jered Davidson, with Public Finance Law Group, said the TIF is a proposed 10-year TIF with a maximum expiration of Dec. 31, 2026.
Davidson said the TIF would equate to about $1 million in generated ad valorem to help off set an industrial grad road. The TIF would be combined with an economic grant and TP&L contribution to pay for the road. Davidson said there also is an incentive relative to inventory as part of the TIF.
“It’s such a large facility and you have to have such lead time for the construction of wind farms and wind projects that many components have to be ordered years in advance prior to construction,” Davidson said. “In Oklahoma the ad valorem tax rolls require that inventory be captured and put and assessed on the tax rolls. The complicated process is since the inventory will be at the facility for a long time, similar to what oil and gas producers are able to do, we envision stacking, which means the assessed valuation will only be 20 percent of that valuation that’s generated and 65 percent of that inventory incentive will be returned back to TP&L to incentivize additional suppliers to impart their inventory at the facility and returned to other ad valorem jurisdictions in the county.”
Davidson said over the 10-year life of the TIF district, it’s expected the city’s investment in the road infrastructure will be refunded, and there will be a $10.4 million ad valorem rebate to Transportation Partners and Logistics. The other $5.2 million will go to the county, schools and health department.
Improvements to the road — between U.S. 412 north to Willow — will make the area viable for more industrial development, and improve bus access to Pioneer Pleasant-Vale Elementary School.
Other items handled by the commission included:
• MAPC approved a lot split for J. Herzog and Sons Inc., the Oakwood Mall’s managing company, for property located at 4029 W. Garriott. The property is an out parcel on the mall property, and is the location of a McDonald’s restaurant.
• The commission approved the lot split for J. Herzog and Sons Inc. for property located at 4209 W. Garriott. The property is an out parcel of the mall and was the former Pizza Hut restaurant.
STORY PROVIDED BY: ENID NEWS & EAGLE
WRITTEN BY: EMILY SUMMARS