07-09-10 Erskine Commons succeeds 15 years ahead of schedule

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Toyota, and led to the creation of 740 new jobs. Each of these targets surpassed original estimates of what could be accomplished in 20 years. Today, the South Bend Redevelopment Commission unanimously approved a plan to next month pay off one of the two remaining bonds that funded the public improvements. Pay off of the final bond is anticipated early in 2011. -more- Pg. 2 “Erskine Commons has succeeded by every measure at a faster pace than we projected, despite its development during the nation’s most troubled economic time since the Great Depression,” said Mayor Stephen J. Luecke. “Not only did the private sector meet its targets, but we are generating more than four times the tax revenue that originally was projected. That enables us to pay off these bonds 15 years ahead of schedule. “This project epitomizes the success of our Redevelopment Commission,” Luecke added. The Redevelopment Commission’s 2004 development agreement with Anchor Properties Ltd. of Covington, Ky., anticipated two types of bonds being issued for public improvements to support Erskine Commons: 1 Tax Increment Finance Revenue bonds issued in 2006 for $2.44 million for improvements to Ireland Road and its intersection with Michigan Street. 2 An Economic Development Commission bond issued in 2005 for $3.5 million to fund site improvements, including capping an old landfill, demolishing small structures on site and relocating utilities. Both bond issues have maturity dates in 2025. The plan approved by the Redevelopment Commission today will pay off the $2.3- million balance on TIF Revenue bonds in August. With the remaining cash balance plus anticipated TIF revenue by the end of the year, staff anticipate seeking approval for payoff of a $3.3-million balance on the EDC bond in the first quarter of 2011. The TIF district for Erskine Commons is generating $3.1 million annually in TIF revenue, compared with the original projection of $750,000 annually. And there’s the potential for additional development on at least four lots within the site. “Erskine Commons continues our development success on the south side, which is enhancing the growth of residential subdivisions within the city,” Luecke said. “As we’ve done with Frederickson Park and Eddy Street Commons, we have at Erskine Commons returned abandoned land back to productive and positive use for the community.”