Tim Ryan tryan@wolfrivermedia.com
The Shawano Common Council Wednesday approved amending one of its Tax Incremental Finance (TIF) districts to include the Shawano Plaza so that financial assistance can be provided for a remodeling of the vacant Kmart space.
Sporting goods chain Dunham’s Sports is looking to move into roughly a third of the 87,000 square-foot space.
Dennis Heling, chief economic development officer of Shawano County Economic Progress Inc., said Dunham’s hopes to be open in April.
Including the Shawano Plaza in the city’s TIF District 6, which runs along East Green Bay Street, would allow the city to provide a grant and low-interest loan for remodeling of the property and some parking lot improvements.
TIF districts are areas where municipalities invest in infrastructure, such as sewer and water, to attract development where it might not otherwise occur, or to make improvements, such as eliminating blight.
Whatever increase in tax revenue that results from development in those districts goes to paying back the debt the municipality incurred from making improvements to the district.
The TIF district amendment will still need to go before the plan commission for a public hearing and will need to get the approval of the Joint Review Board.
The board consists of representatives from the city, Shawano County, the Shawano School District, Northeast Wisconsin Technical College and one at-large member.
Other taxing entities have to approve of the plan because they would not share in any additional revenue from new development in the district until the improvements are paid off.
The proposed TIF amendment would add the entire Shawano Plaza, but only new development at the plaza would go toward paying off the TIF debt.
City Administrator Brian Knapp said the TIF amendment would go before the Joint Review Board by the end of January.
The Kmart store was part of the Shawano Plaza, which is owned and managed by Atlanta-based RCG Ventures, LLC, a privately funded real estate investment group that acquires and develops commercial real estate.
Knapp said the development agreement would require RCG Ventures to make a payment in lieu of taxes if the development does not meet the expected increase in assessed valuation that would be needed to pay off the TIF debt.
According to Heling, the city could provide roughly $450,000 in assistance through a potential grant and low-interest loan by adding the plaza to the district.
RCG Ventures is expecting to do about $2 million worth of renovations.
The Shawano Kmart at 1211 E. Green Bay St. closed in July 2014, laying off 55 employees. It had been in business at that location since 1989.
Michigan-based Dunham’s Sports has a chain of about 200 stores, mostly in the Midwest.