District Taking Applications for $95M in TIF Financing

WASHINGTON, DC-Ten million dollars down, $85 million left to award. The District is taking applications on a rolling basis for the remaining round of tax incremental financing that was slotted for its Great Streets Initiative’s Neighborhood Retail TIF program launched early this year.

At the beginning of the year the DC Council approved plans to award $95 million in new financing to help revitalize certain neighborhoods in the city by supporting the development of destination retail, parking and other infrastructure. Seven corridors are being targeted in the program, which provides gap financing to cover upfront development costs. Tax revenues generated from the projects are then used to repay the financing. The corridors include South Capitol Street, Georgia Avenue, H Street, Minnesota-Benning, Pennsylvania Avenue SE.

In the first round the District awarded more than $10 million in TIF to three development teams that are building $100 million worth of housing, retail and parking in the District, Mayor Adrian M. Fenty recently revealed, calling them “great catalytic neighborhood development projects.”

City Interests plans for a $108-million, 530,000-square-foot housing and residential project at 4001-4045 South Capitol St. in Southwest. Slated to begin late next year, it is receiving $8.8-million TIF from the District and the construction could begin in late 2009.

Four Points and W Street Acquisition plan to build a $5.2-million retail and residential project on the 2200 block of Martin Luther King, Jr. Avenue SE. It is receiving $1.1-million TIF. The third is Neighborhood Development Co.’s The Heights at 3224-3234 Georgia Ave. The District will contribute a $742,000 TIF for the $25-million project.