Following a presentation last week, City Council gave the green light for city staff to start exploring the creation of a New Community Authority for the development of the Park 63 industrial area off of Salzman Road and in the commercial area around the Interstate 75/Ohio 63 interchange.
A New Community Authority is a separate political subdivision that is created by a city council or a township board of trustees and has various powers for the purpose of targeted economic development that a city or township government does not have under state law.
While NCAs are popular in central Ohio around Columbus, there is one local NCA, the Liberty Community Authority for the area around the Liberty Center development. Another NCA is being formed at Union Village in Turtlecreek Twp. in Warren County.
“There’s a lot more flexibility with NCAs and the way it would be set up would be driven by a project’s needs,” said Jennifer Patterson, economic development assistant to City Manager Bill Brock. “Most have municipal control and can be targeted to a single project.”
Patterson said NCAs are created through a petition from a developer to city council and would also require the consent of the property owners in that targeted area. Council decides to grant the request and will also select a rotating board. In addition, she said that multiple community authorities could be formed as needed.
Caleb Bell, a municipal finance attorney with Columbus-based Bricker & Eckler, said once established, the NCA board can issue bonds for specific projects, such as building a road, or a fire station or other community or recreation facilit,y and collect special income, sales or property taxes imposed for that targeted area. If an NCA imposed a sales, income or property tax, those revenues could only be used in that targeted area. He said that would enable the city to use general fund revenues for other projects elsewhere in the city. He said also said that an NCA does not replace the city’s control over zoning or safety services.
Most NCAs are established to complete projects and continue until those bonds are paid off or if new projects are added later. Bell said the city and authority would develop governing powers by agreement.
MORE: Warren County forming new community authority at Union Village
During that same presentation, Patterson and Bell also asked council if this might be the time for the city to form its own port authority.
While most counties have a port authority, there are some cities that have them as well such as the city of Mason.
Patterson said a port authority would enable a city-appointed board to offer a number of other economic incentives that a city government cannot. She said a port authority can facilitate private dollars to help finance job creation and infrastructure projects, administer abatement loan grant programs and directly undertake redevelopment projects. Patterson said a port authority have more flexible powers than what the city’s Community Improvement Corporation has currently.
“It requires substantial cooperation with the private sector,” she said. “It’s becoming increasing important as an economic development tool and incentives… Ports are more flexible and more private.
A port authority can help with transportation, economic development, housing, recreation, education, government operations, culture and research facility projects, she said.
“Ports are doing business at the speed of business,” she said. “Ports are very aligned with that.”
Patterson said a port can be formed by the city and its creation would need to be filed with the state. She said council would also have to appoint the port authority board. Patterson said if the city created its own port authority, it could still partner with the port authorities in Butler and Warren counties to do projects.
Patterson is to return to council next month with more details for council to consider about creating an NCA or a port authority.
City Council also gave the green light to explore creating its own Port Authority to also take advantage of having more control over development and to take advantage of powers that the municipality does not have as well as creating more public/private partnerships. While counties have port authorities, the city of Mason also operates its own Port Authority. If Monroe establishes a port authority, it would terminate its Community Improvement Corporation.
City officials said both models give Monroe more tools in its economic development tool box.
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