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REGULAR MEETING May 28, 2019
<br /> Jason Banicki, 3822 West Ford Street, South Bend, IN, stated, I'm not opposed to all parts of the
<br /> TIF being realigned because we definitely need to update and move some of those boundaries.
<br /> But,there are definitely a few areas that draw my attention. One(1), all of the voluntarily annexed
<br /> land being included into the TIF. That will have a negative impact long-term because most of that
<br /> is undeveloped land and will have a very low property value. Then, of course, when development
<br /> that is already anticipated on this land comes in, now it will all be captured in the TIF District.
<br /> Well, these places asked to be part of the City. It doesn't mean they should get to the front of the
<br /> line and have access to new infrastructure enhancements that people in the City have long been
<br /> neglected from. The Zoo. I've talked about it for years and I'm going to continue talking about it.
<br /> They asked to be let out of the City's budgeting process because they said they can do better.Then
<br /> they came to us a few years ago for a food and beverage tax. Taxpayers said no, you wanted out,
<br /> you're out, don't come to us for more money. Now we are realigning TIF,they are back here again
<br /> trying to get into our tax payer dollars without the oversight that should be required from the
<br /> Council as part of their budgeting process. They want us to pay for their wants, not their needs.
<br /> TIF is not the means for that to happen because it will not improve property values for the
<br /> surrounding properties. It will not add TIF dollars to the roll. Anybody who has lived in South
<br /> Bend from 2008 to today have seen their property values rise. That has a positive impact on not
<br /> just our City but for our parks and for our schools. Well, right now, our schools are struggling and
<br /> when we add all this new TIF land in, the schools don't see that benefit because all those TIF
<br /> dollars go to the Redevelopment Commission. We need to make sure we are not just looking out
<br /> for our redevelopment needs and wants, but we are looking out for our schools. A lot of us who
<br /> ran, a lot of people up here talked about our schools the past few months,TIF is a negative impact
<br /> on our schools. I think it is great we are going from forty-three percent(43%)to forty-one percent
<br /> (41%) of our City, I still think forty-one percent(41%)is way too large of a number to be in a TIF
<br /> District. You are talking about two-fifths (2/5) of our City where we are giving up a whole lot of
<br /> our tax dollars and turning over the oversight from the Council and the Mayor over to an appointed
<br /> commission. As taxpayers, we want to see our elected officials in charge of those tax dollars, not
<br /> appointed individuals. How about we postpone this, since we've been asking for years for
<br /> oversight from the Mayor's Office and feedback, and for these meetings to be moved? How about
<br /> we say, hey, you want this approved, not until you move the meetings to 7:00 p.m. so the general
<br /> public can be a part of those Redevelopment Commission meetings? Until you move those
<br /> meetings, we aren't moving your TIF boundaries. Until you agree, in writing, to give us biannual
<br /> updates on this, we aren't approving your TIF District changes. That is part of the legislative
<br /> process. Now, you have some power to say, until we get what we want, you're not getting what
<br /> you want. I would say this is an opportunity to postpone this and use your power of the legislature
<br /> to get some changes.
<br /> Wayne Hubbard, 215 East Fox Street, South Bend, IN, stated, I would like to know who the
<br /> appraisers are. I would like to know if you guys are the people who do the appraisers. If not, I
<br /> would like to see if that is a conflict of interest if it is a closed door to you guys. I'm not sure how
<br /> that goes. Also,how much of the City does the City actually own? How much more is given away
<br /> through this program? It kind of seems like they're asking you to sell out. So, I'm just asking for
<br /> your opinion on it. It seems like a slick way for them to get more land for motivated sellers.
<br /> Joseph Jones, 605 Donmoyer Avenue, South Bend, IN, stated, There is a lot of talk that goes over
<br /> the heads of a lot of voters, whether it be a Council meeting, a Plan Commission meeting, I say
<br /> things to my family members at times that go over their heads. I've got very simple questions. One
<br /> (1) is, as far as tax incremental financing goes, if I own a home in South Bend and I want to do
<br /> renovations on my home which will increase the tax value, am I able to come apply for tax
<br /> incremental financing the same way developers who are doing these bigger projects are? Because,
<br /> if not, and this isn't contingent on anyone's answer to the question, I'm opposed to this bill on the
<br /> grounds of due diligence and equal access. Due diligence being, as Greg mentioned, the
<br /> commission where meetings are held about what we are doing with the land once we rezone it,
<br /> those meetings are being held when a lot of people are not able to attend. If you want to drive a
<br /> point home to the Mayor, or the Administration at large, stop doing what they want you to do. It's
<br /> like raising a child. If you don't give them consequences, they're not going to stop what they're
<br /> doing. If you want to drive a point home to the Administration about what Councilmember Broden
<br /> talked about, as far as transparency goes, don't approve the resolution tonight. Tell him, if you
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