Explanation
Background: WESTBEND QOZB, LLC (the “Developer”), an affiliate of Thrive Companies LLC, and the City entered into the Economic Development Agreement dated April 19, 2024, as amended by the First Amendment to Economic Development Agreement dated August 19, 2026 (together, the “EDA”), pursuant to Ordinance No. 1866-2023 passed by City Council on July 31, 2023 and Ordinance No. 1511-2026 passed by City Council on June 22, 2026. The EDA provides for the mutual commitments and obligations made towards the former Buckeye Auto Parts brownfield site consisting of approximately 50.28 acres of the real property at the southwest, southeast, and northeast, corners of the intersection of Fisher Road and McKinley Avenue and between the New York Central Railroad to the west and the Scioto River to the east (the “Site”). The Developer intends to privately invest nearly $200 million to develop in multiple phases approximately 895 apartment units (including affordable housing units), up to 8,000 square feet of retail, off-street surface parking, and appropriate associated amenities. The City committed in the EDA to form a tax increment financing area pursuant to R.C. Section 5709.40(B) over the Site (the “WestBend TIF”) to pay for, offset the costs, or reimburse the costs of certain public infrastructure improvements described in the EDA financed by bonds or obligations issued by the Columbus-Franklin County Finance Authority, another port authority, and/or a new community authority established on the Site.
This Ordinance establishes the WestBend TIF under Ohio Revised Code Section 5709.40(B). The WestBend TIF provides for a one hundred percent (100%) exemption from real property taxation on improvements to the parcels within the WestBend TIF for a not more than a thirty-year period for all parcels in each of three separate phases (or any other phases designated by ordinance) within the WestBend TIF. Columbus City Schools will receive, in the same manner as usual, all amounts that they would have received in real property taxes had the tax exemption not been granted. Annual service payments in lieu of taxes will be made by the owner(s) of each parcel with respect to the exempted improvements of the WestBend TIF parcels. The applicable portion of those service payments will be distributed directly to Columbus City Schools. The remaining non-school portion of those service payments will be paid to the City for deposit into the TIF fund established by this Ordinance to be used to finance public infrastructure improvements directly benefiting the WestBend TIF parcels. The Department of Development will submit subsequent legislation to City Council for the appropriation and expenditure of the non-school service payments for the public infrastructure improvements in accordance with authorized agreements.
Emergency Justification: Emergency action is requested to immediately establish the WestBend TIF as the Developer’s lender is requiring the Developer to close on the apartment financing before the end of the month but the lender will not close unless the City first establishes the WestBend TIF and without such financing the apartments may be delayed beyond the deadline in the EDA causing a loss of new housing units and construction jobs.
Fiscal Impact: No funding is required for this legislation. The City is foregoing one hundred percent (100%) of the real property tax revenue that it would have received from development on the WestBend TIF parcels. Instead, the non-school portion of that revenue will be diverted to the TIF fund to support public infrastructure improvements.
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To create the WestBend TIF encompassing property at the southwest, southeast, and northeast, corners of the intersection of Fisher Road and McKinley Avenue and between the New York Central Railroad to the west and the Scioto River to the east; to declare improvements to those parcel(s) to be a public purpose and exempt from real property taxation; to require the owner(s) of those parcel(s) to make service payments in lieu of taxes; to require the distribution of the applicable portion of those service payments to the Columbus City Schools; to establish a municipal public improvement tax increment equivalent fund for the deposit of the remainder of those non-school service payments; and to declare an emergency. ($0.00)
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WHEREAS, WESTBEND QOZB, LLC (the “Developer”) owns or controls an approximately 50.28-acre site generally located at the southwest, southeast, and northeast, corners of the intersection of Fisher Road and McKinley Avenue and between the New York Central Railroad to the west and the Scioto River to the east as depicted on Exhibit A attached hereto (Franklin County Tax ID Parcel Nos.010-146253, 010-146234, 010-146278, 010-200913, 010-200912, 010-104705, and 010-104706, collectively the “Site”); and
WHEREAS, the Developer expects to invest nearly $200 million on the Site to construct approximately 895 apartment units (including affordable housing units), up to 8,000 square feet of retail, off-street surface parking, and appropriate associated amenities in three separate phases on the Site as depicted on Exhibit A attached hereto (the “Phases” and individually, a “Phase”); and
WHEREAS, pursuant to Ordinance No. 1866-2023 passed by City Council on July 31, 2023 and Ordinance No. 1511-2026 passed by City Council on June 22, 2026, the Director of the Department of Development entered into with the Developer the Economic Development Agreement dated April 19, 2024, as amended by the First Amendment to Economic Development Agreement dated August 19, 2026 (together the “EDA”); and
WHEREAS, the EDA outlines the mutual plans and respective commitments of the City and the Developer to implement a new tax increment financing area over the Site (the “WestBend TIF”) to finance certain public infrastructure improvements identified in Exhibit B attached hereto (collectively, the "Public Infrastructure Improvements" and each a "Public Infrastructure Improvement"); and
WHEREAS, Ohio Revised Code (“R.C.”) Sections 5709.40, 5709.42, and 5709.43 (collectively, the “TIF Statutes”) authorize this Council as the legislative authority of a municipal corporation, by ordinance, to declare the improvement to parcels of real property located within the City to be a public purpose and exempt from taxation, require the owner(s) of each parcel to make service payments in lieu of taxes, provide for the distribution of the applicable portion of such service payments to the subjected school districts and the City, establish a municipal public improvement tax increment equivalent fund for the deposit of those non-school service payments, and specify the purposes for which money in that fund will be expended; and
WHEREAS, since a portion of the WestBend TIF may include “parcels that are used for residential purposes” as defined by R.C. Section 5709.40, in order to declare residential property to be a public purpose under R.C. Section 5709.40, the parcels in the WestBend TIF must be located in a “blighted area” of an “impacted city,” as such terms are defined in R.C. Sections 1728.01 and 1.08; and
WHEREAS, the Ohio Department of Development has certified the City of Columbus, Ohio to be an “impacted city” within the meaning of R.C. Sections 5709.40 and 1728.01; and
WHEREAS, a blight assessment and study of the parcels in the WestBend TIF (the “Blight Study”) concluded that such parcels are located in a “blighted area” of an “impacted city,” as each term is defined in R.C. Sections 5709.40, 1728.01, and 1.08, and such Blight Study has been reviewed and accepted by the City; and
WHEREAS, this Council has determined that it is necessary and appropriate and in the best interest of the City to establish the WestBend TIF to exempt from taxation one hundred percent (100%) of the improvements to each parcel of real property within the WestBend TIF (collectively the “Parcels” and each a “Parcel”) as permitted and provided in R.C. Section 5709.40(B) for up to a thirty (30) year period for all Parcels in the three separate Phases (or any other phases designated by ordinance) and to simultaneously direct and require the current and future owners of each Parcel (each individually an “Owner” and collectively the “Owners”) to make annual payments in lieu of taxes, including any penalties and interest (collectively, the “Service Payments”), in the same amount as they would have made real property tax payments but for the exemptions provided by this Ordinance; and
WHEREAS, the City has determined that the applicable portion of the Service Payments shall be paid directly to Columbus City School District (the “School District”) in an amount equal to the real property taxes that the School District would have been paid if the improvement to each Parcel located within the School District had not been exempt from taxation pursuant to this Ordinance; and
WHEREAS, pursuant to R.C. Section 5709.43, this Council has determined to establish a municipal public improvement tax increment equivalent fund in which there shall be deposited the appropriate remaining non-school Service Payments distributed to the City as provided herein; and
WHEREAS, notice of this proposed Ordinance has been delivered to the Board of Education of the School District in accordance with and within the time periods prescribed by R.C. Sections 5709.40 and 5709.83; and
WHEREAS, an emergency exists in the usual daily operation of the Department of Development in that it is immediately necessary for the City to fulfill its commitment under the EDA to establish the WestBend TIF as the Developer’s lender is requiring the Developer to close on the apartment financing before the end of the month but the lender will not close unless the City first establishes the WestBend TIF and without such financing the apartments may be delayed beyond the deadline in the EDA causing a loss of new housing units and construction jobs, all for the immediate preservation of the public health, peace, property, safety, and welfare; and NOW, THEREFORE,
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF COLUMBUS:
Section 1. Parcels and Creation of TIF Area. That the Parcels, and each individual Parcel as currently or subsequently configured, subject to this Ordinance are identified and depicted on Exhibit A. Pursuant to the TIF Statutes, the Parcels will be included in a new tax increment financing area known hereafter as the WestBend TIF the boundaries of which shall correspond with the boundary of, and shall include, the Parcels.
Section 2. Blighted Area and Impacted City. That this Council finds, on the basis of the Blight Study and certification by the Ohio Department of Development, that the Parcels are in a “blighted area” within the meaning of R.C. Sections 5709.40, 1728.01, and 1.08 and the City of Columbus, Ohio is and will continue to be an “impacted city” within the meaning of R.C. Sections 5709.40 and 1728.01.
Section 3. Public Infrastructure Improvements. That this Council hereby designates the Public Infrastructure Improvements described on Exhibit B and any other public infrastructure improvements hereafter designated by ordinance as public infrastructure improvements made, to be made, or in the process of being made that directly benefit, or that once made, will directly benefit the Parcels.
Section 4. Exemption. That pursuant to R.C. Section 5709.40(B), this Council hereby finds and determines that one hundred percent (100%) of the increase in assessed value of each Parcel (including, but not limited to, Parcels that are used for residential purposes) subsequent to the effective date of this Ordinance (which increase in assessed value is hereinafter referred to as the “Improvement” as defined in R.C. Section 5709.40(A)) is hereby declared to be a public purpose and exempt from taxation commencing contemporaneously for all Parcels in each Phase (as identified and depicted on Exhibit A, or any other phases designated by ordinance) on January 1 of the tax year in which at least an aggregate of five million dollars ($5,000,000.00) of Improvements due to new building values would appear on the tax list and duplicate of real and public utility property for the Parcels in that Phase and ending on the earlier of: (a) thirty (30) years after such commencement or (b) the date on which the City can no longer require service payments in lieu of taxes, all in accordance with the requirements of the TIF Statutes (the “TIF Exemption”). That it is the intent of this Council that the TIF Exemption has three 30-year periods, one for each Phase, unless the Phases are redesignated by subsequent ordinance. The TIF Exemption provided by this Ordinance is subordinate to any exemption for a Parcel granted pursuant to R.C. Section 3735.65 et. seq. (community reinvestment area), R.C. Section 5709.61 et. seq. (enterprise zone) and R.C. Section 5709.08 (government and public property) (collectively, the “Authorized Superior Exemptions”). In accordance with R.C. Section 5709.911(B), by this duly enacted Ordinance, this Council provides its duly authorized written consent to any Authorized Superior Exemptions to the Parcels applied for after the TIF Exemption.
Section 5. Service Payments. As provided in R.C. Section 5709.42, each Owner and collectively the Owners are hereby required to make the Service Payments with respect to the Improvement allocable to each Parcel to the Franklin County Treasurer or its designee on or before the final dates for payment of real property taxes. The Service Payments will be charged and collected in the same manner and in the same amount as the real property taxes that would have been charged and collected against that Improvement if it were not exempt from taxation pursuant to this Ordinance. The Service Payments, and any other payments with respect to each Improvement that are received in connection with the reduction required by R.C. Sections 319.302, 321.24, 323.152 and 323.156, as the same may be amended from time to time, or any successor provisions thereto as the same may be amended from time to time (the “Property Tax Rollback Payments”), will be deposited and distributed in accordance with this Ordinance.
Section 6. TIF Fund. This Council establishes, pursuant to and in accordance with the provisions of R.C. Section 5709.43, the WestBend Municipal Public Improvement Tax Increment Equivalent Fund (the “TIF Fund”) into which the appropriate Service Payments and Property Tax Rollback Payments collected with respect to the Parcels and not required pursuant to this Ordinance to be distributed to the School District will be deposited to the City. The TIF Fund will be maintained in the custody of the City. The City may use amounts deposited into the TIF Fund only for the purposes authorized in the TIF Statutes and this Ordinance (as it may be amended). The TIF Fund will remain in existence so long as the Service Payments and Property Tax Rollback Payments are collected and used for the aforesaid purposes, after which time the TIF Fund will be dissolved and any surplus funds remaining therein transferred to the City's General Fund, all in accordance with R.C. Section 5709.43.
Section 7. Distributions; Payment of Costs. Pursuant to the TIF Statutes, the County Treasurer is requested to distribute the Service Payments and Property Tax Rollback Payments as follows:
a. To the School District, an amount equal to the amount the School District would otherwise receive as real property tax payments (including the applicable portion of any Property Tax Rollback Payments) derived from the Improvement to each Parcel if the Improvement had not been exempted from taxation pursuant to this Ordinance.
b. To the City, all remaining amounts for further deposit into the TIF Fund for payment of costs of the Public Infrastructure Improvements, including, without limitation, debt charges on any notes or bonds issued to pay or reimburse financing costs or costs of those Public Infrastructure Improvements.
All distributions required under this Section are to be made at the same time and in the same manner as real property tax distributions.
Section 8. Further Authorizations. This Council hereby authorizes the Director of the Department of Development, the City Clerk, or other appropriate officers of the City (or each’s designee) to deliver a copy of this Ordinance to the Ohio Department of Development and to make such arrangements as are necessary and proper for collection of the Service Payments and Property Tax Rollback Payments. This Council further authorizes the Director of the Department of Development, the City Clerk, the City Attorney, or other appropriate officers of the City (or each’s designee) to prepare and sign all agreements and instruments and to take any other actions as may be appropriate to implement this Ordinance.
Section 9. TIRC. The City’s Tax Incentive Review Council (“TIRC”) shall review annually all exemptions from taxation resulting from the declarations set forth in this Ordinance and any other matters as may properly come before the TIRC, all in accordance with R.C. Section 5709.85.
Section 10. Effective Date. That for the reasons stated in the preamble hereto, which is hereby made a part hereof, this Ordinance is hereby declared an emergency measure and shall take effect and be in force from and immediately after its passage and approval by the Mayor, or 10 days after passage if the Mayor neither approves nor vetoes the same.