Aldermen okay funds to study potential tax increment financing district
On Tuesday night, the Manchester Board of Mayor and Aldermen approved $24,150 funding to study a potential Tax Increment Financing (TIF) District in southern Elm Street area between Granite Street and Queen City Avenue.
MANCHESTER, N.H. – On Tuesday night, the Manchester Board of Mayor and Aldermen approved $24,150 funding to study a potential Tax Increment Financing (TIF) District in southern Elm Street area between Granite Street and Queen City Avenue.
The proposal comes after unexpected additional costs related to inflation, construction prices and issues with local railroad infrastructure jeopardized a series of infrastructure upgrades coming to the area.
These upgrades were initially intended to be funded by U.S. Department of Transportation Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) Grants. Without funding to make up for the additional cost, these grants would have to be returned to the federal government.
The upgrades include a pedestrian bridge above Granite Street, a bridge connecting South Commercial Street and Elm Street, a walking trail between Northeast Delta Dental Stadium and Queen City Avenue and a redesigned intersection at the corner of Queen City Avenue, South Willow Street, Willow Street and Cilley Road.
The proposed TIF District would extend from Queen City Avenue to Granite Street and Beech Street to the Merrimack River. Under New Hampshire law, TIF Districts are municipal funding mechanisms where property taxes from increased property values in a specific area can be used to pay back a specific infrastructure improvement, which in this case is the related RAISE upgrades.
