Indiana Tax Reporter: TIF Districts Aid Fort Wayne

From a lengthy article in the Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette:

As Fort Wayne struggles with spending more money than it collects, at least one financing tool is doing reasonably well for the city.

The city?s dozen tax increment financing districts had a combined cash balance of more than $20 million ? more than the city?s general fund. While much of the money from these special taxing districts is tied to existing debt payments or projects ? such as for Grand Wayne Center?s expansion and Harrison Square ? there is some flexibility in how the money can be used in the future.

How that money is used takes on heightened significance in the era of state property tax caps.

Tax increment financing is typically considered an economic development tool that allows cities and counties to create zones where they can collect all the property taxes on new development from that area. One such example is the district established for Jefferson Pointe and Apple Glen.

The city created a tax increment financing district before the shopping complexes were built so it could collect all the property taxes from those developments into a special fund. This means the taxes from those developments don?t go to regular city services, such as police or fire, or to other local governments or schools.

Instead the city used the money for everything from improving roads to building Parkview Field.
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Every year the city?s redevelopment commission must decide which tax districts will collect revenue, and which will be ?turned off,? allowing the taxes to flow normally to local governments and schools. While the City Council must create tax districts, the appointed redevelopment commission has full control to operate them.
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More importantly, however, the city must begin deciding what role tax increment financing districts should play in an era of state property tax caps, according to John Stafford, director of the
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Source: http://indianapropertytaxreporter.blogspot.com/2012/08/tif-districts-aid-fort-wayne.html

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