When it comes to economic development, commissioners with the Elizabethton Housing and Development Agency are making sure all their questions are answered before signing off on a tax-increment financing (TIF) district.

Commissioners met Tuesday for their regularly scheduled monthly meeting and voted to set up a workshop for Tuesday, May 1, at 9 a.m. to speak with Elizabethton City Manager Pro Tem Jon Hartman and others involved with implementing a district before approving the resolution.

EHDA Board Chairman Dale Shook said commissioners are wanting to see the city and country progress, but would feel more comfortable having any concerns addressed before moving forward on the project.

Hartman, who was in attendance for Tuesday’s meeting, also fielded questions during the meeting in regards to the housing agency’s role for a TIF district.

According to Hartman, the technical responsibility for EHDA would be to process and review applications for development. The city manager pro tem added that if the board was able to pass the resolution, EHDA would also receive the application fees for each development project.

When asked about the workshop, Hartman was in agreement with the measure and added that he would work on having the Knoxville-based lawyer that has helped coordinate the local project, along with representatives from Kingsport Housing, to provide information to commissioners. Kingsport’s housing agency operates under the same style proposed locally when it comes to using tax-increment financing.

The local TIF project — titled the Watauga River Redevelopment Area and Urban Renewal Plan — passed during the March 2018 meeting by a 21-2-1 vote. City Council unanimously supported the project during their April meeting. If approved by EHDA, it would then have to be signed off from the state before going into effect.

According to information provided by the city’s Planning and Development office, the city is estimating $218,000-plus annually in additional property tax revenue over the course of 30 years.

Once a TIF district is implemented, the city and county would ultimately “freeze” property taxes they would collect on the property while the property owner would continue to pay taxes on the full amount of the assessed value of their property. According to information from the planning development office, “the difference between what the city and county collect and what the property owner pays is set aside into a special TIF fund.” The money gathered would then be reinvested back into the properties receiving the TIF.

Information provided by City Hall indicates the plan area consists of roughly 135.3 acres spanning from behind Wal-Mart off Overmountain Drive to property near Cherokee Park Drive.

The cause for the TIF is to help addressed the “number of buildings that have fell into disrepair” in the area and address environmental issues, according to the redevelopment plan.