Cary to hold hearing on downtown TIF district

Cary’s downtown hasn’t seen much new significant development over the years and 43% of structures within the downtown area are more than a century old, Cary Development Director Brian Simmons said.

That’s why village officials say the Village Board should create a special taxing district, known as a tax-increment financing district, or TIF.

Money earmarked by the TIF district could be used to address aging infrastructure in the area, according to village documents.

After a series of meetings over the last year, the approval process for the TIF district is now entering its final stages.

A public hearing is planned for 6 p.m. Tuesday at Cary Municipal Center, 755 Georgetown Drive. Residents and representatives of other impacted taxing districts - like the school districts – will have the opportunity to voice their thoughts on the proposed district.

Written comments can be sent in advance to the Cary deputy village clerk at Cary Municipal Center, 755 Georgetown Drive, Cary, IL 60013.

A TIF is a financial tool that allows villages to earmark certain property taxes for development, including through incentive packages for developers or for new infrastructure or public amenities within the area. It works by freezing the property values local taxing bodies collect taxes off of; revenue collected off any new value goes to the TIF.

Typically, a TIF lasts for a duration of 23 years.

Cary is considering creating one along Route 14 from the Fox River to Cary-Algonquin Road, covering much of its Route 14 and downtown corridor.

The village has previously held public meetings where numerous speakers, including residents and those representing different organizations, raised concerns about what the TIF could mean for Cary.

Bob Johnson, president of Cary-Grove Youth Baseball and Softball said he does not publicly have an opinion of the TIF itself but he is concerned about what it could mean for the baseball fields at former Maplewood Elementary School, which lies directly in the boundaries of the proposed TIF district.

Six of the baseball fields the program uses are located at Maplewood. In addition, the group uses the property for storage. For years, the property has been a key location for CGYBS.

Maplewood has been targeted for new development since the school closed in 2010. One of the latest efforts to re-develop the property was last year when a Pennsylvania company entered a purchase agreement with Cary School District 26 to build over rental units to replace the former school. That deal was canceled by the developer last year.

With the TIF’s approval, it would make it highly possible that the long-vacant property is redeveloped into something else.

“The TIF has forced this more into the forefront with the uncertainty of what would happen with the property,” Johnson said. “I wanted to make sure that those 500 children had representation.”

Some residents, though, believe the TIF could be a good thing for the village.

John Richards, a resident of Cary, said he thinks the downtown area is in need of a renovation.

“I understand why some people wouldn’t want it,” Richards said. “But that downtown area would certainly benefit from some renovations.”