Tax Districts Would Lead Downtown Ferndale into Future, DDA Says

To move downtown Ferndale into the future, Ferndale Director Cristina Sheppard-Decius said the DDA will look to develop and implement four new special tax districts around the central business district of the DDA.

The special districts, called Tax Increment Financing (TIF), are not a new tax on local businesses or residents, but caps taxes at a certain year, and as property values increase, the revenue generated from that increase goes to the DDA.

Currently, there is one TIF district in the core area of the DDA — essentially running along Nine Mile, from Livernois to Bermuda, and along Woodward, from Saratoga to Breckenridge. This TIF district was implemented in 1981. And, as property values in this area increased from that year forward, the DDA collected those incremental funds — and not just from the city, but from the county as well.

In 1981, the city was receiving about $141,000 in revenue from taxes. The city still receives that, but the increase in property values allows the DDA to capture about $362,000 in revenue on top of that. The funds are used to improve the downtown area for all residents, Sheppard-Decius said.

TIF revenue, however, doesn't just come from the city. The county also has to opt into the proposal. The county contributes about 19 percent of the TIF revenue, while the city portion is about 78 percent.

"We need to set a course," Sheppard-Decius said. "We can't continue growing without a plan for these areas."

Sheppard-Decius said these new TIF districts would be the base for that course.

The projected new areas run along Woodward, from Breckenridge north to Oakridge, and from Saratoga south to Marshall. And then there are two along Nine Mile, from Livernois west to Pinecrest and from Bermuda east to Paxton.

Sheppard-Decius said the new TIF districts, which would have an end date depending on various projects they encompass, would allow the DDA to set goals and objectives with funding.

Various projects are written into the plan, and as all of those projects are completed, the TIF area is closed out.

The current TIF district in the core of downtown is unique, Sheppard-Decius said. "There is no solid end date for the current one," she said.

The TIF districts have to be approved by the City Council and the county. Sheppard-Decius said the DDA is aiming to take the TIF district plan to the council in the fall.

Preliminarily, the projects will make these areas more walkable, more accessible and more inviting for economic development, she said.

Sheppard-Decius said West Nine Mile, outside of the central business district, is one particular area the DDA would like to make more walkable.

"That area needs to be more accessible," she said. "With on-street parking, ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) compliant, it'll probably be a $250,000 project to make that happen. We need to start collecting to start the investment."

Sheppard-Decius said creating TIF districts would secure downtown Ferndale's vibrancy, thus making Ferndale a stronger place as a whole.

"This isn't just about businesses and downtown," she said. "Downtown is the heart of the community, and if the heart stops ..."

She shrugged.

"You know what happens when the heart stops."