Amendment Sought for Pleasant Prairie Tax Increment District #2
In order to provide for needs that will allow the continued success of Tax Increment District #2 (TID #2) in Pleasant Prairie, the Village has initiated an amendment to the District. If approved, this fourth amendment to TID #2 would bring the project total to $94.2 million, which amounts to a $15 million increase in TID #2 funding over the last amendment in 2008. Amendments proposed to the TID #2 Project Plan will be considered at a Plan Commission meeting on Monday, August 13 and at a subsequent Village Board meeting.
The revisions are directly related to: an upcoming expansion of the Uline Corporate Campus south of Highway Q, west of I-94; updates of financial estimates to complete infrastructure improvements; the provision of financial incentives for quality, family-sustaining jobs; and the acquisition of easements and land for transportation, sewer and stormwater improvements. The $15 million increase is comprised of approximately: $6.8 million for roadway improvements; $6 million for Uline site improvements (less $5.2 million in improvements no longer to be completed); $3.1 million for sewer, water and stormwater improvements; $1.7 million for a multi-modal transportation lot; $1.3 million for economic development incentives; and $1.3 million in land acquisition, administrative and other costs.
The Uline Campus expansion will consist of a second warehouse/distribution center (1.25 million square feet) and will further contribute to the success of the TID and expansion of the District's tax base. Uline's Corporate Campus in Pleasant Prairie, which was completed in 2010, currently employs an estimated 800 positions, with 600 positions in their corporate offices and 200 positions in the current warehouse. It is estimated that the expansion will add up to 250 positions once fully operational.
Roadway and sewer improvements along 39th Avenue south of 104th Street are meant to prepare for the future development of the Village Green Center with commercial and residential uses. A multi-modal transportation lot inside Prairie Springs Park is intended to include retail components and parking for commuters and patrons. Future plans could include a regional bus stop and Amtrak platform. Funds for economic development incentives would be used to attract new businesses that would provide high-quality jobs with family-sustaining wages.
Financing for TID #2 projects, in the form of general obligation bonds, will be issued in the years that projects are undertaken. Debt for the TID will be repaid with property taxes from businesses within the District. Once all of the debt for the TID has been repaid, the district will be retired, and the property tax payments will then be directed back to the taxing entities. It is expected that TID #2 will be retired in 2021 or earlier, depending upon the success of the development within the TID.
Pleasant Prairie's first TID was created in 1989 to assist in the establishment of LakeView Corporate Park. It was retired in 1999, ten years earlier than originally anticipated. The initial value of TID #1 was $15.75 million, and today, corporate park development in Pleasant Prairie is valued at $744 million and accounts for 31.07% of the total value of the Village. This creates a substantial benefit in the amount of property taxes residents in Pleasant Prairie pay each year.
"The TID projects in Pleasant Prairie have provided quality, sustainable economic development for our area," stated John Steinbrink, Village President. Our commercial and industrial residents are a great asset to our community. They provide employment, contribute to our tax base, reinvest in the community, and help to grow and balance the local and regional economy. We, in turn, offer them a great place in which to conduct business and a great place for their employees to live, work and play." If the Plan Commission and Village Board approve the proposed amendment, it will go before a Joint Review Board comprised of representatives from all of the taxing entities for consideration.