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Legislative Ltrs TIF Fin HF686City Manager's Office City Hall 50 West 13th Street Dubuque, Iowa 52001-4864 April 28, 2003 VIA E-mail and 1st Class Mail mike_connolly@legis.state.ia.us The Honorable Mike Connolly Iowa State Senator 3458 Daniels Dubuque, IA 52001 Re:Tax Increment Financing (TIF) Legislation HF686 Dear Senator Connolly: Recently the House passed HF 686 regarding changes to Tax Increment Financing. Included within this legislation was the change to a 5% cap based upon assessed value instead of taxable value. It is critical that any legislation passed by the Senate have similar language. TIF generated from a project based upon assessable value is a truer reflection of the economic impact of the project, and provides more flexibility to each community. Also included within HF 686 is the elimination of property tax abatement for retail projects in any TIF district. While we would support the elimination of such abatement in an economic development TIF district, this is often a critical component for a slum and blight TIF district. In Dubuque, like in many other Iowa communities, a slum and blight TIF district is located in our downtown area. As you know, the face of downtowns have shifted and we find ourselves challenged with retaining a vibrant and active city center. This shift has resulted in downtowns serving as niche, retail centers in order to stay competitive with other parts of our community. Once again TIF is an important financing tool that can make a difference in a project in downtown. TIF allows the City to keep its debt service Iow by providing payments to compames, who in turn borrow the funds for the project instead of the municipality. I know you realize the impact Tax Increment Financing (TIF) has had on Dubuque. Since Dubuque began to use TIF as one piece of a financial package for business Senator Mike Connolly April 28, 2003 Page 2 retention, expansion and recruitment, economic development in our community has grown. To date over 1,310 jobs have been retained in our community and an estimated 762 new jobs will be created. In addition, total community assessed valuation has increased over 70% in the last twelve years, to $1.659 billion, much of this valuation is the direct results of projects that were assisted with TIF. I can assure you that without financial tools, such as TIF, these jobs and value to our community would never have been realized. I hope that this information, along with our previous correspondence, conveys to you how effective TIF has been in generating economic development and jobs for Dubuque. Please join others in voting yes for legislation supporting TIF, including TIF for retail projects in areas designated as slum and blight. Thank you for your continued support! Sincerely, Michael C. Van Milligen City Manager MCVM:cs cc: Mayor Terry Duggan Dubuque City Council Tom Bredeweg, Executive Director, Iowa League of Cities Susan Judkins, Director of Governmental Affairs, Iowa League of Cities Steward Sandstrom, President & CEO, Dubuque Area Chamber of Commerce Rick Dickinson, Executive Director, Greater Dubuq ae Development Corporation Barry Lindahl, Corporation Counsel Cindy Steinhauser, Assistant City Manager Bill Baum, Economic Development Director Pauline Joyce, Administrative Services Manager The Honorable Mike Connolly Iowa State Senator 3458 Daniels Dubuque, IA 52001 The Honorable Julie Hosch Iowa State Senator 22852 Butterfield Road Cascade IA 52033 The Honorable Roger Stewart Iowa State Senator 3936 317 Avenue Preston, IA 52069 City Manager's Office City Hall 50 West 13th Street Dubuque, Iowa 52001-4864 (563) 589-4110 office (563) 589-4149 fax ctyragr @cityofdubuque.org April 28, 2003 VIA E-mail and 1st Class Mail pam_jochum@legis.state.ia.us The Honomble Pam Jochum Iowa State Representative 2368 Jackson Dubuque, lA 52001 Re: HF 686 Dear Representative Jochum: I just wanted to take a moment to thank you for your recent vote in favor of HF 686 related to Tax Increment Financing (TIF). Since Dubuque began to use TIF as one piece of a financial package for business retention, expansion and recruitment, economic development in our community has grown. To date over 1,310 jobs have been retained in our community and an estimated 762 new jobs will be created. In addition, total community assessed valuation has increased over 70% in the last twelve years, to $1.659 billion, much of this valuation is the direct results of projects that were assisted with TIF. I can assure you that without financial tools, such as TIF, these jobs and value to our community would never have been realized. However, included within HF 686 is the elimination of property tax abatement for retail projects in any TIF district. While we would support the elimination of such abatement in an economic development TIF district, this is often a critical component for a slum and blight TIF district. In Dubuque, like in many other Iowa communities, a slum and blight TIF district is located in our downtown area. As you know, the face of downtowns have shifted and we find ourselves challenged with retaining a vibrant and active city center. This shift has resulted in downtowns serving as niche, retail centers in order to stay competitive with other parts of our community. Once again, TIF and in particular, the use of property tax abatement, is an important financing tool that can make a difference in a project in downtown. Property tax abatement allows the City to keep its debt service Iow by providing payments to companies, who in turn borrow the funds for the project instead of the municipality. This is also effective for projects that have little building improvements but will create high paying jobs. Representative Pam Jochum April 28, 2003 Page 2 I hope that this information, along with our previous correspondence, conveys to you how effective TIF has been in generating economic development and jobs for Dubuque. Please encourage others in voting yes for legislation supporting TIF, including TIF for retail projects in areas designated as slum and blight. Thank you for your continued support! Sincerely, Michael C. Van Milligen City Manager MCVM:cs cc: Mayor Terry Duggan Dubuque City Council Tom Bredeweg, Executive Director, Iowa League of Cities Susan Judkins, Director of Governmental Affairs, Iowa League of Cities Steward Sandstrom, President & CEO, Dubuque Area Chamber of Commerce Rick Dickinson, Executive Director, Greater Dubuque Development Corporation Barry Lindahl, Corporation Counsel Cindy Steinhauser, Assistant City Manager Bill Baum, Economic Development Director Pauline Joyce, Administrative Services Manager The Honorable Pam Jochum Iowa State Representative 2368 Jackson Dubuque, lA 52001 The Honorable Gene Manternach Iowa State Representative 9608 Maple Road Cascade, IA 52033 The Honorable Pat Murphy Iowa State Representative 155 N. Grandview Avenue Dubuque, IA 52001 The Honorable Steven Lukan Iowa State Representative 7365 Columbus Street New Vienna IA 52065