AEDC NEWSROOM

 

Allen City Council Approves TIF for CBD

Allen, TX - (January 22, 2007) The Allen City Council formally approved the creation of a Tax Increment Finance (TIF) District on December 12, 2006 encompassing approximately 240 acres of the Central Business District (CBD) and approximately 640 acres of land to the west across US 75 in the Twin Creeks Business Park. The main purpose for including the land to the west was to ensure a faster build up of funding to be used in the Central Business District redevelopment efforts.

In 2000 the City Council adopted the Central Business District Redevelopment Plan. That Plan established the framework upon which the revitalization of the CBD could move forward. In 2004, a new zoning district was established and the vision for the CBD reaffirmed. Creation of the TIF now provides an opportunity to provide funding for major capital improvements and public infrastructure and to encourage private investment.

Significant investments have been made by the City of Allen in the Municipal Complex, the Allen Library, the Allen Senior Center, Allen Station Park, and to the backbone of the traffic circulation system through upgrades to Cedar Drive, Allen Drive, and St. Mary Drive including a bridge across Cottonwood Creek to Greenville Avenue. All of this work demonstrates the commitment by the City Council of Allen to making the CBD a vibrant part of the community.

“Currently, about 40% of the land in the CBD is vacant with another 20% seriously underutilized,” according to David Hoover, Director of Planning and Development for the City of Allen, “The redevelopment opportunities set forth in the vision for the CBD include a mix of restaurants, entertainment, galleries, hotel, retail, residential apartments, and offices. With the vision and funding source in place, 2007 offers promise that the time for revitalization of the CBD is now.”

“From an economic development standpoint, the inclusion of Twin Creek Business Park in the TIF provides an opportunity to enhance infrastructure in the park that supports the medical, retail and office/flex projects underway and planned,” said Robert Winningham, Executive Director of the Allen Economic Development Corporation.