Explanation
BACKGROUND: Columbus City Council approved the creation of the Polaris Tax Increment Finance (TIF) on December 16, 1996 by Ordinance 3106-96. This original Ordinance was amended on April 7, 2004 by Ordinance 627-2004, which added 82.45 +/- acres to the Polaris TIF district. The present legislation is the second amendment of Ordinance 3106-96 and the purpose is to add 22 +/- acres to the Polaris TIF district. The additional acreage will help provide the revenues necessary to fund the cost of the public infrastructure improvements that benefit the district.
The Olentangy Local School District will receive payments in lieu of real property taxes in the amount that would have been paid if the improvements had not been exempted from taxation.
Notice of this proposed Ordinance has been delivered to the Boards of Education of the Olentangy Local School District and the Delaware Joint Vocational School District.
FISCAL IMPACT: No funding is required for this legislation.
Title
To amend Ordinance No. 3106-96, and Ordinance No. 627-2004, to declare improvements to certain additional parcels of real property to be a public purpose; to require the owners thereof to make service payments in lieu of taxes to be used to fund the costs of the public improvements; to describe the public improvements to be made to benefit those parcels; and to declare an emergency (Polaris TIF boundaries).
Body
WHEREAS, Section 5709.40 of the Ohio Revised Code (R.C.) authorizes the legislative authority of a municipal corporation by ordinance to declare improvements to a parcel of real property located in a municipal corporation to be a public purpose; and
WHEREAS, the Columbus City Council (the "City") approved Ordinance No. 3106-96 (the "Original Ordinance") on December 16, 1996 to establish the Polaris Tax Increment Finance (TIF) district (the "Original Property") described in Exhibit A of the Original Ordinance, and determined that real property improvements in the Original Property will be a public purpose; and
WHEREAS, the Columbus City Council first amended the Original Ordinance on April 7, 2004 by Ordinance No. 627-2004 to add an area of 82.45 +/- acres to the Original Property and this first addition is described in Exhibit A-1 of Ordinance 627-2004; and
WHEREAS, the Original Property plus the 82.45 +/- acres added in 2004 collectively comprise the current area of the Polaris TIF (the "Current Property"); and
WHEREAS, the Columbus City Council now desires to add 22 +/- acres to the Current Property and this second addition is described in Exhibit A-2 attached hereto (the "New Property"); and
WHEREAS, the Current Property and the New Property shall collectively comprise the expanded area of the Polaris TIF (the "Expanded Property"); and
WHEREAS, the City has determined that it is necessary and appropriate, and in the best interest of the City, to exempt the New Property and proposed improvements from taxation as permitted and provided for in R.C. Section 5709.40 (B); and
WHEREAS, in accordance with R.C. Section 5709.42, the City has elected to direct and require the current and future owners of the New Property and any improvements thereon to make annual service payments in lieu of taxes to the Delaware County Treasurer on or before the final dates for payment of real estate taxes; and
WHEREAS, pursuant to Ordinance No. 3106-96, the City has created a municipal public improvement tax increment equivalent fund for receipt and deposit of its portion of the service payments in lieu of taxes (the "Special Fund"); and
WHEREAS, R.C. Section 5709.40 (D) provides that the ordinance shall designate specific public improvements made, to be made or in the process of being made, by the municipal corporation that directly benefit or that once made will directly benefit the Expanded Property, and these improvements are described in Exhibit B-2 of this Ordinance (the "Public Improvements"); and
WHEREAS, the City has determined that the proposed improvements to the New Property shall, during construction and upon completion, place a direct additional demand on the Public Improvements or, to the extent the Public Improvements have not been constructed, will place direct additional demand on the Public Improvements when completed; and
WHEREAS, the City has determined that the estimated percentage of the incremental demand placed on the Public Improvements that is or will be directly attributable to the proposed improvements on the Expanded Property is or will be one-hundred percent (100%); and
WHEREAS, R.C. Section 5709.40 (B) requires the legislative authority of a municipal corporation to specify, in the ordinances adopted pursuant to such Section, the percentage of the proposed improvements to be exempted from taxation; and
WHEREAS, the City has determined that it is appropriate and in the best interest of the City to exempt one-hundred percent (100%) of the New Property and the proposed improvements on the New Property from taxation to the extent permitted by R.C. Section 5709.40; and
WHEREAS, Ordinance No. 3106-96, the Original Ordinance, and Ordinance No. 627-2004, established that payments in lieu of real property taxes provided for in the R.C. Section 5709.42 shall be paid to the Olentangy Local School District in the amount of the real property taxes that the Olentangy Local School District would have been paid if the improvements had not been exempted from taxation in the Original Property of the Polaris Tax Increment Finance; and
WHEREAS, notice of this proposed Ordinance has been delivered to the Board of Education of the Olentangy Local School District and the Delaware Joint Vocational School District on November 28, 2005 in accordance with and within the time period prescribed in R.C. Sections 5709.40 (B) (2) and 5709.83; and
WHEREAS, the current and future owners of the New Property shall be required to make service payments in lieu of the real property tax payments they would have made except for the exemptions provided by this Ordinance and the Original Ordinance; and
WHEREAS, (i) current and future owner(s) shall be required to make service payments in lieu of real property tax payments they would have made except for the exemptions provided by this Ordinance, (ii) N.P. Limited Partnership shall prepare and file with the Delaware County Recorder a declaration against new property owned by it which shall be covenants running with the property and which shall require the current and future owner(s) to make these service payments in lieu of real property tax payments, and (iii) the current and future owner(s) will agree, pursuant to such declaration, that the service payments in lieu of real property taxes shall constitute a lien on the property having the same force and effect as a lien of real property taxes; and
WHEREAS, an emergency exists in the usual daily operation of the Department of Development, in that real property improvements are occurring in the New Property and it is immediately necessary to add the New Property to the Polaris TIF district so that the stream of service payments from these improvements can be captured to preserve the public health, property, safety and welfare;
NOW, THEREFORE
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF COLUMBUS
Section 1. In accordance with R.C. 5709.40, the City hereby finds and determines that the increase in the assessed value of the New Property and improvements thereto subsequent to the effective date of this Ordinance is and shall be a public purpose, which increase in assessed value of the New Property is added to the definition of Improvements in the Original Ordinance, and as the Improvements were amended by Ordinance 627-2004.
Section 2. The City hereby exempts one-hundred percent (100%) of the increased real property valuation and the value of the improvements on the New Property from taxation, as and when the improvements are made and the exemptions claimed and allowed in a manner provided by law for the period set forth under this Ordinance.
Section 3. Subject to any real property tax abatement in effect as of the effective date of this Ordinance or granted hereafter, and as provided for in Section 5709.42, the City hereby directs and requires the current and future owners of the New Property to make, on or before the final date for payment of real property taxes, annual service payments in lieu of the real property taxes exempted under this Ordinance.
Section 4. The City hereby directs and requires N.P. Limited Partnership to prepare and file with the Delaware County Recorder a declaration against such property owned by it, constituting part of the new property, which shall be a covenant running with such property and which shall (i) require the current and future owner(s) of such property to make service payments in lieu of the real property tax payments they would have made save for the exemptions provided by this Ordinance, and (ii) make the current future owner(s) acknowledge and agree that the service payments are payments in lieu of the real property taxes and shall constitute a lien on such property having the same priority and effect as the lien on real property taxes.
Section 5. That the Whereas clauses and section 5 of Ordinance No. 627-2004 are hereby amended such that payments to the "School District" shall have the same meaning as set forth in Ordinance No. 3106-96.
Section 6. In accordance with R.C. Sections 5709.40 and 5709.42, and this Ordinance, the Delaware County Treasurer shall make payments in lieu of real property taxes to the School District in an amount equal to the amount of real property taxes forgone by the School District because of the exemptions in the New Property provided for in this Ordinance. This provision for payments in lieu of taxes applies specifically to the New Property, i.e., the 22+/- acres being added to the Polaris TIF with this legislation.
Section 7. In accordance with R.C. Section 5709.42, and this Ordinance, after making each payment in lieu of real property taxes to the School District, the Delaware County Treasurer shall distribute the remainder of the service payments in lieu of these taxes to the City for deposit in the City's Special Fund.
Section 8. The public improvements described in Exhibit B-2 attached hereto, that are made, to be made, or in the process of being made, by the City are hereby designated as part of the Public Improvements that directly benefit or that once made will directly benefit the Expanded Property; and that the service payments in lieu of the real property taxes paid to the Delaware County Treasurer for the New Property, less the School District's share, shall be distributed to the City and paid into the Special Fund for the purposes described in the Original Ordinance as amended and Exhibit B-2 hereto.
Section 9. That portion of the payments in lieu of real property taxes to be paid to the School District for the New Property pursuant to this Ordinance and R.C. Sections 5709.40 and 5709.42 shall be paid directly to the Delaware County Treasurer.
Section 10. The exemptions granted in this Ordinance shall commence on the effective date of this Ordinance and shall end on the date provided for in the Original Ordinance.
Section 11. Pursuant to R.C. Section 5709.40 (E), the City Clerk is hereby directed to deliver a copy of this Ordinance to the Director of Development of the State of Ohio, the Delaware County Treasurer and the Delaware County Auditor within fifteen (15) days of the effective date of this Ordinance.
Section 12. For the reasons stated in the preamble hereto, which is made a part hereof, this Ordinance is declared to be an emergency measure and shall take effect and be in force from and after its passage and approval by the Mayor, or ten (10) days after passage if the Mayor neither approves nor vetoes this Ordinance.