Villages of Quechee • White River Junction • Hartford • West Hartford • Wilder
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Tax Increment Finance
In April of 2011 the Hartford Selectboard approved the establishment of the Hartford White River Junction (WRJ) TIF District to provide another financing tool for the ever increasing cost of needed improvements to public roads, sidewalks, parking areas, streetscapes, water and sewer lines and stormwater systems. The establishment of the District was approved by the State in December of 2011.
The next step is for the voters of Hartford to approve the right for the Town to consider opportunities for financing these improvements. This is done by approving an overall debt Click to View
maximum to construct these improvements, with the understanding that in the future all financing of the improvements will be reviewed and approved by the voters and/or Selectboard project by project if and when the timing is right.
TIF FACTS
•The purpose of a TIF District is to stimulate economic development that brings jobs and new tax dollars to the Town.
•TIF Districts are established in areas needing significant public investment in public infrastructure, without which new privately funded development or redevelopment cannot or is not likely to occur.
•TIF funding supports only improvements on public property such as sidewalks, streets, water/sewer system upgrades, and parks; this is not funding to improve private property.
•Incremental tax gains (identified as green in the diagram above) refer to those NEW Town and State property tax monies collected from the NEW development; there are no new taxes on existing properties/businesses.
•During the 20-year life of the WRJ TIF District, 75% of the NEW incremental local and state tax gains that come from NEW development in the WRJ TIF District are put in a special TIF fund and used to pay for TIF designated public improvement projects in Downtown WRJ (see figure above); the remaining 25% goes into the Town’s general revenue fund, for town-wide projects and services, and to the State’s education fund.
•The money generated to pay for TIF investments is not being taken from the Town’s general revenue fund, will not increase residents' taxes, and is not decreasing investment in public infrastructure elsewhere.
BALLOT QUESTION FACTS
•Article 14 does not obligate or authorize the Town to spend money at this time.
•Article 14 only gives permission to the Selectboard to consider using the TIF District form of financing in the future for public improvements that will cost up $13,000,000.
•Approval of Article 14 still requires Hartford residents to decide in the future if the time is right to make the investment in TIF projects in WRJ on a project by project basis, either at a Selectboard meeting or by ballot vote.