The city of Monmouth’s fourth Tax Increment Financing district would support a more than $5 million redevelopment and expansion of a northside gas station and convenience store.
The proposed North Commercial TIF district incorporates the site of Beck’s Oil on North Main Street, near the Smithfield Foods pork processing plant.
City Administrator Lew Steinbrecher said the project includes a new building, fuel pumps, and canopy.
“But then towards the back, they're also building a fuel station for semi trucks along with a large parking lot along the west end of that property,” he said.
Beck’s also purchased property north of the site and annexed it into the city as part of the redevelopment.
TIF districts capture incremental property tax revenue to provide incentives for developments in blighted or underdeveloped areas.
For the Beck’s project, TIF-eligible costs include the acquisition of the annexed property, demolition of the old building, and legal and design expenses, for a total reimbursement of around $2.5 million of the project costs.
A public hearing on the establishment of the North Commercial TIF District is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. Monday, Feb. 3 at city hall.
Steinbrecher said the city has seen significant success with the other three TIF districts.
“It is the single most significant economic development incentive tool available not only to Monmouth but to most municipalities in the state of Illinois,” he said.
Monmouth’s downtown TIF district has been in place since the 1990s. A more recent Main Street district incorporates Smithfield, Monmouth College, Midwestern Pet Foods, and the Love’s Travel Stop south of town.
The proposed Beck’s TIF district is a lot like the one that brought a Fareway grocery store to town during the pandemic.
“We would not have Fareway without it,” he said. “A lot of the rehabilitation of those historic commercial buildings in the downtown would not have been rehabilitated, so I think it has saved the historical character of the downtown.”
Steinbrecher said matching funds for the public square renovation are coming from the downtown TIF district. TIF funds are also supporting renovation of the Bankers Life building.
The Main Street TIF helped with the Monmouth Townhomes development and expansion at Midwestern Pet Foods.
Steinbrecher estimates Monmouth has experienced at least $20 to $25 million of growth in equalized assessed value over the last 10 to 15 years, with much of that growth inside the TIF districts.
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