City of Gainesville - File #: 150138.

• File #: 150138.
• Version: 1
• Type: Discussion Item
• Status: Passed
• File created: 7/6/2015
• In control: City Manager
• On agenda: 8/6/2015
• Final action: 8/6/2015
• Title: Discussion of a Finding of Necessity Report and Establishing a Northwest Community Redevelopment Agency Area (B) This item is a request for the City Commission to receive a Finding of Necessity Report and determine whether to create a new Community Redevelopment Agency Area; and if so, determine the area’s geographic boundaries.

Date	Ver.	Action By	Action	Result
8/6/2015	1	City Commission	Approved, as shown above	Pass

Title
Discussion of a Finding of Necessity Report and Establishing a Northwest Community Redevelopment Agency Area (B)

This item is a request for the City Commission to receive a Finding of Necessity Report and determine whether to create a new Community Redevelopment Agency Area; and if so, determine the area’s geographic boundaries.

Explanation
Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) Areas are special districts with a dedicated funding source that Cities and Counties can use to encourage private investment and development. The primary funding source is Tax Increment Financing (TIF), which annually transfers all or a portion of any increase in property tax revenue within the CRA Area to a trust fund for redevelopment within the CRA Area.

The year that a City or County creates a CRA Area is known as the “base year”, and is the year that property tax payments to the applicable taxing authorities (i.e., the City, the County, the School District, the Water Management District, and the Library District) are locked in. As property values and property tax payments increase over time, the additional tax revenue (i.e., the increment revenue) remains within the CRA Area boundaries. This creates a positive feedback cycle that encourages investment within the CRA Area.

In Florida, the State regulates the establishment of CRA Areas. In order to create a CRA Area, state law requires that a city or county make a finding, supported by data and analysis contained in a Finding of Necessity (FON) Report, that the subject property constitutes a “slum area” or a “blighted area”, as defined in state statutes.

On April 5, 2012, the City Commission considered conducting a FON Study to determine if certain areas in Northwest Gainesville meet the state definition of a “slum area” or a “blighted area”, and therefore are eligible to become a CRA Area. At that meeting, the Commission indicated that, at a minimum, the study should answer the following three questions: 1) Does slum/bli...