A proposed East Side Tax Increment Financing district could pave the way for a new subdivision of 18 to 23 owner-occupied, single-family homes in Monmouth.
At a public hearing for the proposed TIF district, Mayor Rod Davies said the TIF designation would help the city extend infrastructure to around nine acres of vacant farmland on North 12th Street so homes could be built there.
“We have a housing development study that was conducted by Northern Illinois University and it certainly was clear that there was demand and need for at least 75 new single-family homes here in our community,” Davies said.
Under the TIF proposal, which has not yet been approved by the council, the city would annex the land. The city would sell bonds to pay for extending streets, water and sewer lines, and other infrastructure — and then sell lots to people or developers looking to build homes.
Davies estimated the finished lots would be sold for $25,000 to $30,000.
“The expectation would be for a minimum of 1600 square feet for each home,” Davies said.
The homes would be in the Monmouth-Roseville school district and have city police and fire protection.
In response to a resident’s question about whether people would build in Monmouth with current home construction costs, Davies said the city continues to receive inquiries about housing availability in town.
New home construction is not TIF-eligible, so builders won’t receive incentives. But the city plans to use the increase in property tax revenues generated by the development in the TIF district to pay the debt service on the bonds used to extend infrastructure.
The TIF district would also include commercial properties along 11th Street, making them eligible for redevelopment incentives.
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