Explanation
BACKGROUND: This Council is being asked to approve the Plan for Improvements and Services (Attached) to be provided by the Discovery Special Improvement District; and to approve the properties of the municipal corporation in said plan for improvements and services.
A companion ordinance is being presented simultaneously that approves the Petition, the Articles of Incorporation of the Discovery SID, and the inclusion of properties owned by the City of Columbus in the district.
At the request of property owners on the east side of Downtown, City Council authorized the creation of the Discovery Special Improvement District of Columbus, Inc. (Discovery SID) in 2006 to begin collecting assessments for services in the SID area. The Discovery SID has operated successfully since its inception and the property owners reauthorized the Discovery SID in 2010 and 2015 with Council’s consent. The property owners now request reauthorization for an additional five-year period (2021 to 2025) with slightly different boundaries.
A one-petition process has been initiated in which owners representing at least 60% of the frontage of property within the District signed that they are interested in reauthorizing the SID and they approve of the plan for improvements and services to be provided by the SID.
This resolution is the second of a series of four actions required by Chapter 1710 of the Ohio Revised code to reauthorize.
FISCAL IMPACT: No funding is required for this legislation.
Title
To approve the plan for improvements and services to be provided by the Discovery Special Improvement District of Columbus, Inc.; and to approve the properties of the municipal corporation in said plan for improvements and services.
Body
WHEREAS, the property owners located in the Discovery Special Improvement Development area have initiated a petition to reauthorize the SID and have filed the petition with the Clerk of the Columbus City Council along with the Articles of Incorporation of the Discovery Special Improvement District of Columbus, Inc., an Ohio non-profit corporation to be responsible for the operation of the SID; and
WHEREAS, a companion ordinance being presented to Columbus Council simultaneously will request the approval of the Discovery SID’s Petition and Articles of Incorporation and the inclusion of the properties owned by the City of Columbus in said district; and
WHEREAS, this legislation is requesting the approval of the Plan for Improvements and Services to be provided by the Discovery SID pursuant to Ohio Revised Code Chapter 1710; and
WHEREAS, the Clerk of Columbus City Council finds the property owners per the signed petition and the City per this resolution represents at least sixty percent (60%) of the front footage of the property located in the Discovery SID per Chapter 1710; and
WHEREAS, it is the determination of this Council that the Special Improvement District is a valuable tool for continuing to further economic development and a means of continuing to revitalize the downtown area; NOW, THEREFORE,
BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF COLUMBUS:
Section 1. That the Plan of Improvements and Services, including the estimate of cost of the improvements and services to be provided by the Discovery Special Improvement District of Columbus, Inc., now on file with the Clerk of Columbus City Council, and all of which are incorporated herein as (Attachment A), are hereby approved.
Section 2. That the Mayor or his designee is hereby authorized to designate in writing that the properties of municipal corporation abutting upon the streets described in the petition are included in the Plan of Improvements and Services as required by the Ohio Revised Code Chapter 1710.
Section 3. That the Clerk of Columbus City Council is hereby directed to post a copy of this resolution in the Office of the Clerk of Columbus City Council as provided by the Ohio Revised Code Chapter 1710.
SECTION 4. That this resolution shall take effect and be in force from and after the earliest period allowed by law.