Berwyn has been outpacing Oak Park with economic development along Roosevelt Road for years and the Oak Park village board thinks it is time to catch up.
Trustee James Taglia, seconded by Trustee Chibuike Enyia, motioned to discuss a Tax Increment Financing district along Roosevelt, and possibly extending to include the Mohr Concrete property. There was also discussion of a TIF that included North Avenue. This unfolded at the village board meeting on Aug. 25.
“I believe it’s an important tool for strengthening the corridor and investing in the future. Roosevelt Road is an important gateway to Oak Park,” said Taglia. “It’s home to local businesses, serves our residents and neighboring communities, and has tremendous potential, but realizing its potential requires focused, long-term investment.”
The other trustees and President Vicki Scaman expressed mutual interest in the idea which has been proposed for years but never acted upon. Chris Donovan, a resident of Oak Park, gave a public comment at the meeting saying it’s “about time.”
A TIF “freezes” property tax values at the current level with the revenues from any increase in property values going into a discreet fund to be invested in new development or improvements. Other local taxing bodies have to sign on to a multi-decade TIF which caps the tax dollars they receive at the baseline level.
“If a TIF were to be put in place, it would affect the tax revenue for our partner municipality, schools, and I think that’s just something we have to be thoughtful of and have some conversations with those folks so they know what the potential impact would be,” said Trustee Derek Eder at the meeting.
Berwyn established a TIF district for Roosevelt Road in 1997 and recommendations for establishing one for Oak Park have been on the table since 2012. Trustee Enyia, who lives near the corridor, said he sees people utilizing the spaces along Roosevelt, but “its all on the other side of the street.”
Trustee Cory Wesley stressed the importance of intentionality in moving forward with any investment and development efforts, encouraging a look into how these areas are thought of in general.
“We have treated them as barriers between Oak Park and the city, or Oak Park and our southern neighbors, and I think even with the establishment of a TIF, that intentionality, that perspective on how we treat these border areas has to change in order for this to be successful,” said Wesley.
Village Manager Kevin Jackson said he is “excited” to initiate a TIF study and bring back more information now that there has been direction given by the board to explore this effort further.