County picks members of commission (10/03/06)

A Jay County Redevelopment Commission was appointed by Jay County Commissioners Monday - the first step in creating a tax increment financing (TIF) district.

Sue A. Beesley, an attorney with Bingham-McHale LLP, Indianapolis, who assisted the city of Portland with creating its commission, met with commissioners Milo Miller Jr., Gary Theurer, and Faron Parr to guide them through the initial steps of creating a TIF at the site of an ethanol plant under construction southwest of Portland.

Commissioners adopted an ordinance to establish the department of redevelopment and its members.

Appointed to the county's inaugural redevelopment commission were Todd Wickey, a member of the Jay County Council; Portland banker Carl Walker; Jay County Engineer Dan Watson; and local attorney Brad Burkett.

Parr also agreed to serve on the five-member commission. Members will initially serve a term of 15 months. Later appointments will be staggered, commissioners agreed.

Beesley explained that it will be up to the commission to establish a district and direct how funds from that district are used.

TIF districts typically are established in areas targeted for future development. The taxes on the rising assessed valuation in the districts is used by the commission members to improve infrastructure within the district.

Through other local officials, most notably Bob Quadrozzi, executive director of Jay County Development Corporation, officials from Premier Ethanol LLC have asked commissioners to establish a TIF at the site of the new facility near Meshberger Brothers Stone Co.

TIF funds will then be used to help install infrastructure for the new plant - including a rail spur to the plant from the existing rail line along Ind. 67.

Funds may also be used to help the county pay for extension of a city of Portland sewer line to the plant site. That extension could lower the cost of solving problems with septic systems in and around the Foxfire addition on county road 125 South.

In 2004 the county was ordered by the state to correct a problem there when it was discovered that sewage was flowing into a creek on the west side of the Foxfire Addition that then flows into the Salamonia River. The discharge was apparently from an old septic system, it was determined.

Beesley presented commissioners with a timeline Monday for establishing the TIF, emphasizing that the district must be in place by March 1 in order to capture funds from 2006 property taxes (payable in May and November of 2007).

After establishing the boundaries of the district, the plan must then be approved by the Portland Planning Commission since the site lies within the city's two-mile jurisdiction, Beesley explained to commissioners.

Concerning how much the TIF would generate and how long it should be in place, commissioners said Premier officials had not provided relevant information.

"We need to know how much they want," Theurer said.

"We need to talk with them," Beesley said. "We need to know what they want. There's some engineering to be done ... there's a lot to be done."

Three public meetings will be held before the district is adopted and Beesley explained that the next step will be for the commission to submit a declaratory resolution.

"Once they adopt the declaratory resolution, that triggers the date (for the district to be in place)," Beesley said. "As long as it's before March 1."

Commissioners signed a contract with Beesley Monday to assist with establishing the TIF but once the redevelopment commission is in place, she will be working with them, commissioners agreed.

Also Monday, commissioners heard Teresa Foster-Geesaman, director of the Jay Emergency Medical Service, give cost estimates for refurbishing one of the county's ambulances, but commissioners took no action on the request, asking her to provide more information.

Foster-Geesaman was asking that a new chassis for the ambulance be purchased, but that the box housing the medical equipment be removed, upgraded, and replaced on the new body.

In another matter, following a public hearing, commissioners signed a Community Development Block Grant application, presented by Anita Mullen, director of specialized services for Community and Family Services.

Mullen said the $300,000 grant would be used in Jay, Blackford, Huntington, and Wells counties to assist low-income homeowners to make repairs to their homes.[[In-content Ad]]