White River Junction
Meanwhile, the board at its meeting on Tuesday decided to table a $811,700 project that would reconfigure and add green space to the Town Square municipal parking lot across from Hotel Coolidge.
The White River Junction TIF district — which covers downtown on both sides of the White River, including parts of Pine and Maple streets — was created in 2011 and authorized to borrow up to $13 million for infrastructure improvements. Under TIF financing, the town can incur debt for 10 years after the creation of a district, and has 20 years after it approves its first bond to retire the debt. The town has borrowed $3.7 million so far, leaving about $9.3 million it can seek to bond for new infrastructure projects.
The advantage of TIF financing is that the bonds are repaid by the additional tax revenue generated by increased property values in the district where improvements are made. Of the additional tax money generated, 75 percent goes to pay off debt, with the remainder going to the state education fund and the town’s general fund.
Each round of borrowing must be approved by town voters.
“If we hold off on (Town Square) this time around, it will help spread the numbers around the three election cycles we have left to work with,” Selectboard Chairman Simon Dennis said at the meeting. “$5.7 million is a big number.”
The South Main Street and Gates Street construction project would upgrade water, wastewater and stormwater infrastructure, install new and repair existing sidewalks and crosswalks, install lighting and landscaping, repair a retaining wall and repave portions of both streets, according to a presentation by Hartford Planning and Development Director Lori Hirshfield.
The consensus among board members, Hirshfield and Town Manager Leo Pullar on Tuesday was that the project should receive priority while TIF financing still is available.
“It’s an opportunity for (the state) to pay for a huge project that’s going to have to get paid for one way or another,” Selectboard member Kim Souza said, referring to the fact that some of the tax revenue that would otherwise be claimed by the state education fund is kept locally under the TIF model.
Thanks in part to recent development projects, including the Bridge and Main mixed-use building and The Village assisted living facility, among others, the TIF district’s grand list property values already have increased by nearly 43 percent, or $23.7 million, since 2011.
Still, Selectboard member Dick Grassi was wary of assuming growth will continue at such a substantial pace.
“I understand (the town keeps 75 percent of state property taxes), but it’s still spending money we don’t have,” Grassi said. “Infrastructure supports growth, but what is that growth? That increase in the grand list is as high as it’s been in a long time. Will there be another increase like that?”
Several members of the White River Junction business district attended the meeting to encourage the board to continue supporting improvements to the village, including Northern Stage special projects manager Eric Bunge and Hotel Coolidge owner David Briggs. Bunge was accompanied by Stuart Johnson, a former Northern Stage board chairman who continues to work with Bunge.
“Managing this (TIF) funding is a huge responsibility,” Johnson said. “If you’re anywhere in the Upper Valley, just outside the Upper Valley, or even when you start venturing a little bit along the East Coast, people are talking about White River Junction. We have to keep it going.”
The tabled Town Square municipal parking lot project would aim to improve vehicle and pedestrian circulation by making its entrance/exit area more accessible and adding raised pedestrian walkways. Drainage and lighting also would be improved, and a small, triangular grassy park would separate the lot from South Main Street.
Selectboard member Rebecca White said she was “overjoyed” at the idea, but Dennis said he would like to leave some TIF financing available to potentially assist future plans for a parking garage. For more than a year, adding a parking garage downtown — most likely in the 7.75-acre South Main Street Municipal Lot, behind the former American Legion building — has been considered as a way to help mitigate perceived parking issues in the business district.
Parking occupancy in the downtown’s 368 spots has increased 54 percent since 2014, according to a recent town study, though nearly 30 percent of spaces remain available even during peak times.
“My gut is leaning toward a parking garage,” Dennis said. “If we add ($881,700) for a park, I’m not sure all three can fit into the $9.3 million in TIF funding we have to work with.”
The Selectboard also listened to a capital improvement plan update from Pullar, who prioritized nearly $17.4 million in safety equipment, road, facilities and recreation upgrades, including $3.6 million for a new outdoor pool and more than $200,000 each for public safety facility improvements and Bugbee Senior Center upgrades.
Selectboard member Alan Johnson mentioned that it’s the Selectboard’s job from here to determine the order of priorities before approving a budget in the coming weeks to go to voters at Town Meeting.
The Selectboard is expected to meet early next month to discuss the budget and capital improvement plan.
Jared Pendak can be reached at jpendak@vnews.com or 603-727-3216.