Residents and taxpayers will be asked to approve or deny the establishment of a Mariner’s Way Tax Increment Financing (TIF) district, as well as the master plan to oversee it, at a Tuesday, Jan. 22 town meeting at 7 p.m. at Town Hall.

Mariner’s Way is the name given to Route 1 East as part of a 2014 Planning Commission study and plan for redevelopment of the area between the town center and Ferry’s Point, the marina district. The master plan grew out of concern that the area was headed toward decline and even blight, as well as awareness that revitalization could connect the vibrant, mixed-use districts on either end, rather than detracting from their appeal.

A TIF is a method intended to help revitalize a town or district by anticipating increases in tax revenue and applying a portion of that increase to renewal projects in that district. Creation of TIFs are enabled and guided by Connecticut state law.

In establishing the TIF, the town creates a mechanism to set aside funds to re-invest in the district. These funds are 50 percent of the increase in tax revenues in that district.

Current tax revenue from the district will be used as a baseline. As property values increase and tax revenues go up accordingly, 50 percent of the increase is set aside, slated for revitalization. The monies might, for instance, allow the town to apply for a state grant that requires matching town funds, or the resources may help attract private investment in the district. Establishing a TIF district does not increase the tax rate.

The Jan. 22 public meeting is the end result of the process of evaluating and moving toward creating the TIF district. Using grant money, the Board of Selectmen (BOS) hired a consultant, Patrick McMahon of the Connecticut Main Street Center, to develop a proposal and help guide the town through the process of adopting it.

In September 2018, the BOS voted to create a policy that allowed the town to create TIF districts. It then sent its Mariner’s Way proposal and master plan to the Planning Commission. The Planning Commission and the Economic Development Commission held a joint meeting, evaluated the proposal and master plan, decided they were in keeping with their vision for the district as well as for the entire town, and approved them. The BOS was then required to set up a public meeting at which residents were invited to hear about the plan, ask questions ,and voice concerns. That meeting took place in October 2018.

“The meeting was a presentation by the consultant,” said First Selectman Carl P. Fortuna, Jr. “and to get information out there on this. There’s a misconception that this is some sort of tax break. People are asking questions like, ‘Why are we giving money away?’ We’re not.”

Were a Mariner’s Way TIF Master Plan adopted, property owners within the district would continue to pay to the town all property taxes owed on the assessed value of their properties. This TIF plan would direct 50 percent of the property tax increment tied to higher property value into the town’s general fund and 50 percent of the increment into a TIF fund, which could be tapped by the BOS to pay for public investments in the TIF District designed to spur private investment in the area.

Examples of such public TIF revenue investments would be projects to build new sidewalks, a bike path, or make streetscape improvements.

“This is a district,” Fortuna continued. “It’s an area of town that we would like to see some movement toward redevelopment and if that happens and the Grand List grows as a result of it, both the town and the district benefit. We get 50 percent of the increase in value...The town decides how that money is spent in the district. So it’s not a giveaway to anybody.”

Fortuna said that establishing the district costs the town nothing and there is no imperative that money be spent. It creates an incentive for outside investment and interest in the area and enables the town to reinvest the fruits of any investment.

“There’s no guarantee that you’ll get anybody in there in the next 10, or 5, or one year,” said Fortuna. “It sends a message in your marketing of the area to say, ‘Listen, we’re serious about redeveloping… It needs it, and we want to partner with you in developing it.’

“It shows we’re open for business,” he added.

If the district and Master Plan are approved at the Jan. 22 meeting, a TIF Advisory Board will be established to oversee the funds, guided by the master plan, which outlines their collection and use. The goal of the Advisory Board will be to encourage redevelopment and revitalization that meet with the town’s vision for Mariner’s Way.