Our Vice Mayor Jeff Flowers is doing his best to speak out to our community concerning many important details regarding our Maitland Down Town development.
If you did not receive the following email, I strongly urge you write him asking to be placed on his list (see his email address below).
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Dear Maitland voters
The city is on the cusp of setting the course for all of our future. The decisions that are reached in the next few meetings will determine the shape of our new downtown and tax structure for our future as well as the future we hand over to our children. I am writing to you to share the information I have and to get your feedback on this issue that will affect all of us.
Please email me
Taxes
The Florida legislature just mandated lower taxes. This means that our city services will need an additional tax base to cover the cost of our current service level. Building a new town center will create the additional commercial business that can generate sales and other taxes that will help offset this lowered tax rate. This will allow the city of Maitland to maintain the superior services we have come to enjoy and expect.
Tax Increment Financing (TIF) is essentially tax revenue above and beyond the taxes already being paid to the city. Florida Statutes specify that the TIF income derived from new construction may only be spent on specific things such as infrastructure and not end up in the general fund. So, using TIF revenue to repay infrastructure costs in the town center is actually the only option for that money. Whether infrastructure is built in the town center or anywhere in the CRA, the same portion of TIF revenue still may only be used for infrastructure per the inter-local agreement Maitland has with Orange County.
With the Brossier plan to create a Community Development District (CDD) the city will not be required to guarantee the bonds. The CDD will take out the loans. In other words the city does not have to “co-sign” for the loans to build the town center and will not be financially responsible in any way if a CDD is created. This means that city taxes will never be increased to pay for the downtown’s new infrastructure no matter what, since the city is not financially responsible nor involved in the building of the site. Clearly this is something we have to consider going forward.
City Emergency Services Building(s)
The original plan had this building located next to the Presbyterian Church on George Street. The church objected to that placement so that site is not available. The existing plan saves 30% of the cost to construct a larger Fire House than the earlier plan. It has a central location that will improve our response time. The new plan can be expected to start building late 2007. Our Firefighters deserve our community support now. The existing 'facility' is a shame. Prices to build have increased in the 3 years that we have not built. We need a cost savings to be able to use the funds we have available to get the job done.
Downtown
We don't have one now. We need the economic engine that a viable City Center provides to allow us to build out our QNPs and other city improvements that we all want. The new businesses in the City Center will pay other taxes (utility, franchise, communication, sales tax, etc.) these sources represent 68% of all revenues and can be spent on existing and new city services. Today, we have a single developer and a single plan to consider. This plan is to invest $400,000,000 into our City.
We are at a decision point and I wanted to get these facts to you to get your informed opinion.
Vice Mayor
jflowers@ci.maitland.fl.us
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