1. What is urban renewal?
2. What is the purpose of the Tigard City Center Urban Renewal Plan?
3. What are Tigard's specific plans for urban renewal?
4. Will taxes increase as a result of urban renewal?
5. Will urban renewal mean that there is less money for schools, police & fire, or streets and parks?
6. How is urban renewal financed?
7. How long will the Urban Renewal District and tax increment financing last?
8. Where else has urban renewal been used?
9. Does urban renewal force property owners to sell or modify their property?
10. How was the Urban Renewal Plan developed?
11. What are the boundaries of the Urban Renewal District?
12. Who is in charge of urban renewal?
13. How much will be spent on urban renewal?

1. What is urban renewal?
The purpose of urban renewal is to improve specific areas of a community that are poorly developed, under-developed, or that have declined over time. These areas can have old, deteriorated buildings; streets and utilities in serious need of upgrades (or the areas can simply lack streets and utilities altogether), weak business activity, and few or aging parks and public facilities. Urban renewal is a process authorized by Oregon law to finance improvements in these neighborhoods and districts using "tax increment financing." A portion (the increment) of property tax revenues from properties within the urban renewal district are designated to support financing for improvements to the urban renewal area.

For a city government to use urban renewal to help rejuvenate local neighborhoods and business districts, it must establish an urban renewal agency, and it must adopt an urban renewal plan. Urban renewal agencies are authorized by Oregon law (ORS Chapter 457) but are specifically "activated" by local governments.

2. What is the purpose of the Tigard City Center Urban Renewal Plan?
The stated purpose of the City Center Urban Renewal Plan is to provide improvements in the downtown area so that it will be economically healthy while maintaining its "uniquely Tigard" character. The establishment of the Urban Renewal district provides a funding mechanism for projects in downtown Tigard.

3. What are Tigard's specific plans for urban renewal?
Under Oregon law, urban renewal can provide special funding for a wide variety of projects and programs. Tigard's approved City Center Urban Renewal Plan authorizes funding for up to 35 different projects in the City Center over twenty years. Most of the proposed projects in Tigard's plan are for public improvements and facilities, although some assistance for private businesses and property owners is proposed.

The Tigard City Council, working closely with dozens of citizens (and after numerous hearings and meetings) included the following categories of projects in the proposed urban renewal plan:

• Street Improvements
• Streetscape Improvements
• Bicycle and Pedestrian Facilities
• Parks
• Public Spaces
• Public Facilities
• Planning and Development Assistance (for privately owned properties)

Under urban renewal the Tigard City Council will have new authority to allocate funding for such projects. Tigard's citizens will remain in control of these decisions. Every year through a budget process, the City Council acting as the development agency will ask the community which projects should be funded, designed, and built. The urban renewal agency must follow all the usual public involvement and hearing procedures required for building and delivering these projects, as well as some additional procedures required by Oregon law. Gradually, these public improvement projects could stimulate private re-investment in the Downtown. For more information review the City Center Urban Renewal Plan  (1.04 MB) and the Report Accompanying the City Center Urban Renewal Plan  (161 KB).

4. Will taxes increase as a result of urban renewal?
There will be no net change on Tigard property tax bills as a result of Urban Renewal.

Under today's Oregon law, property tax rates are fixed. New property taxes will absolutely not be created as a result of urban renewal. Tigard's City Center Urban Renewal Plan also does not authorize any "local option" tax levies or special assessments. Tax revenue generated from the increase in property values multiplied by current tax rates are what pay for urban renewal under revised Oregon law.

5. Will urban renewal mean that there is less money for schools, police and fire, or streets and parks?
When this financing plan was presented to the other taxing districts boards (School District, Fire District, Washington County, etc.), no major objections were raised or comments filed. However, some persons may have concerns that tax increment financing would result in tax proceeds going to the urban renewal district that would have otherwise gone to the City and other taxing districts. They may be concerned that money would be diverted from schools, police, fire, or public facilities maintenance to urban renewal. Under the State's School Financing Statutes (ORS Chapter 327), tax increment financing, in most cases, does not affect the total amount received by a school district.

Under urban renewal property taxes based on the current value of properties in the urban renewal district at the time of urban renewal district formation (May 2006) will be paid out to schools, local governments, and other taxing districts at the same rate and level that are being paid now - before the formation of the urban renewal district. Only property tax proceeds resulting from the increase in property values within the urban renewal district (called the "tax increment") can be used for urban renewal. In many cases the increase in value would be the result of the urban renewal, so the increase in value and property tax revenues would not have occurred without urban renewal.

6. How is urban renewal financed?
Urban renewal is a process authorized by Oregon law to finance improvements in those neighborhoods and districts that need special attention and revitalization, using something called "tax increment financing". Under tax increment financing, a portion (the increment) of property tax revenues from properties with the urban renewal district are designated to support financing for improvements to the urban renewal area.

These tax increments are used to repay municipal bonds. Bond proceeds are used to finance improvements that will revitalize the district. New taxes are not imposed to fund urban renewal. Bonds and tax increment financing as described above will be used to fund projects in the urban renewal plan. Under this system, the increment portion of property taxes generated within the urban renewal area is temporarily shifted to repay the bonds used to finance projects in the City Center.

Under tax increment financing, when the value of a property within the urban renewal district increases, the proceeds from property taxes on the increased value (the "tax increment") go to the urban renewal district. These proceeds fund further urban renewal projects, either directly or by providing for the repayment of municipal bonds that fund improvements. The tax increment is unique as a source of funding, because it is usable only for projects identified in the urban renewal plan.

7. How long will the Urban Renewal District and tax increment financing last?
The Urban Renewal District will last 20 years. As can be seen from the chart in Figure 1, tax increment financing will remain in place for a period of time thereafter until the bonds are paid off.

8. Where else has urban renewal been used?
Two examples of urban renewal can be seen in neighbor cities of Tigard - Tualatin and Sherwood:

• Tualatin's downtown, the Tualatin Commons, is the best-known product of that community's urban renewal plan.
• Sherwood's Old Town District is part of a larger urban renewal area nearer to Six Corners on Highway 99W.

Our region has many other examples of urban renewal efforts. Many well-known places in Portland such as Waterfront Park, River Place and Pioneer Courthouse Square are products of urban renewal. Lake Oswego has changed its downtown through urban renewal. Wilsonville, Hillsboro, Gladstone, and Oregon City also have urban renewal districts.

Information on other cities' experiences with urban renewal is available from those cities (many have websites) and from others in those communities.

9. Will Urban Renewal force property owners to sell or modify their property?
The Plan does not propose any forced sale of property. Property for redevelopment would be purchased from voluntary and willing sellers.

Whether or not urban renewal is in place, the City has the power to condemn property for public uses, such as street right-of-way. However, the plan does not propose that the City use its condemnation power in connection with the urban renewal plan. The plan does not require any property owners to modify their property, and the City does not have the authority to require property owners to modify their property, except to abate nuisances.

10. How was the Urban Renewal Plan developed?
In late 2005, this same citizen-business-City partnership that worked on the Tigard Downtown Improvement Plan collaborated to find financing for the "catalyst" projects identified in the Downtown Improvement Plan. Urban renewal and tax increment financing was identified as a potential source of financing and an urban renewal plan was prepared. The voter-approved Tigard City Center Urban Renewal Plan will provide the special financing for the public improvement projects identified in the Tigard Downtown Improvement Plan.

11. What are the boundaries of the Urban Renewal District?
Tigard's Urban Renewal District is roughly bounded by Fanno Creek Park, Hall Blvd. and Highway 99W, plus a few smaller adjacent properties.

12. Who is in charge of urban renewal?
Tigard's City Council, (officially called the City Center Development Agency when attending to urban renewal issues) will administer the District. The citizen-led City Center Advisory Commission (CCAC) will continue to advise the Council on matters of policy, budget and project selection.

Although the City Center Development Agency is a separate legal entity from city government, it is governed by the Tigard City Council. This arrangement is similar to Washington County's Board of Commissioners acting as the Board of Directors of Clean Water Services, our area's sanitary sewer and storm water agency. The City Center Development Agency must publicly adopt an annual budget like any other government; it will also be subject to all the land use and development requirements of the City, County, State of Oregon and other agencies. Specific improvement projects under urban renewal are also subject to the same public review as any other project the City of Tigard might undertake.

13. How much will be spent on urban renewal?
The Tigard City Center Urban Renewal Plan will finance up to $22 million in public improvements over twenty years.