| Economic Development Division The Economic
Development Division is a division of the Office of the City Manager and is administered
by the Planning and Economic Development Director. The Planning and Economic
Development Director is appointed by, and serves at the pleasure of, the City
Manager. The Economic Development Division is responsible for serving as a liaison
between the city government and the business community and for promoting industrial and
commercial recruitment and retention, downtown development and redevelopment,
diversification and stabilization of the city's tax base, and formulation and
implementation of the city's economic enhancement plans, such as the Business District
Master Plan and the Economic Development Strategic Plan. The Richmond Tax Increment
Finance Authority (TIFA) and the Richmond Economic Development Corporation (EDC) are two
essential tools being utilized to achieve the economic development goals of the city.
Economic
Development Corporation
EDC
Director - Troy S. Jeschke
The purpose of the EDC is to further the economic development of
the City of Richmond through the promotion of the growth and economic development of
Industrial and Commercial enterprises. The primary objectives of the EDC are
twofold, Business Retention and Business Attraction.
Business Retention is the programs and procedures that we use to
help existing businesses within the City of Richmond. We currently have three
financial aid programs that help businesses, and offer one promotional item that lists all
commercial businesses in the City.
The three programs that the City of Richmond Offers are the Project
Clean-Up program, the Downtown Revitalization Program, and the Facade Loan Program.
Each program offers either grants or innovative financing options to businesses interested
in doing exterior repairs or alterations to their storefronts.
The Richmond Business Directory is a list of all businesses that
operate within the City of Richmond. This listing is broken into categories such as
General Retail, Financial Institutions, and Medical Services. The Business
Directories are available at City Hall and are automatically inserted in the welcome
baskets to new residents.
On the other end of the spectrum is our Business Attraction
efforts. Business Attraction is primarily the act of listing available
commercial/industrial properties, working with local real-estate agents, working with
Macomb County's Planning and Economic Development Department, and working with the
Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC). We are also working on a vacant
building and property list that will be updated on a quarterly basis.
Tax
Increment Finance Authority
TIFA
Director - Jon Moore
As a means to enhance economic growth in local communities, the
Michigan State Legislature enacted the Tax Increment Financing Act, Public 450 of 1980, as
amended. This Act enables a municipality to establish a Tax Increment Finance Authority
(TIFA) consisting of seven local residents appointed by the City Council to undertake
public projects aimed at promoting economic development within the TIFA district.
The TIFA is responsible for preparing a development and financing plan and implementing
the objectives of the plan, which may include but are not limited to sidewalk repair or
replacement, street lighting, street improvements, land and building acquisition, property
leasing, parking and landscape improvements, and building signage.
The funds appropriated to the Tax
Increment Finance Authority are generated through tax increment financing, a public
funding method in which the growth in taxable value on property located within the TIFA
district is captured and tax revenues from the captured value are used to make
improvements within the district. The TIFA Act allows the City of Richmond to capture the
annual growth in taxable value measured from the baseline taxable value in 1984, the year
the city's TIFA was established.
TIFA funds may be used to assist business
owners within its district with improvements and development projects. For instance, TIFA
may support a proprietor through assistance with utilities such as water mains and sewer
line installation. In some instances, TIFA may purchase land and in turn negotiate with a
prospective business owner for the resale of the property.
|
