Tax district gets initial OK

Bob Coble said a hearing Thursday was one of the few times in 20 years as mayor he's seen business and neighborhood leaders fighting on the same side.

They won.

On a 4-2 vote, Columbia City Council approved a $193.9 million plan to build streets, utility lines and parks in North Columbia and along the riverfront.

A final vote Feb. 17 will create two tax districts reserving future revenues to repay the debt that will finance the improvements. The revenues would accumulate for 25 years.

Gail Baker and her neighbors pressed the city to embrace the redevelopment plans envisioned for North Main Street, Two Notch and Farrow Road.

"I don't think we can say no anymore," said Baker, who has lived in North Columbia more than 30 years.

The public hearing drew about 30 people, most affiliated with the Greater Columbia Chamber of Commerce.

Allen University, Benedict College and Columbia College were represented, too. Each said their institutions would benefit from the commercial renewal promised by the new districts.

One motivation for acting now is that the S.C. State Hospital property goes on the market next year. At 165 acres, it is the largest and most desirable piece of in-town property to become available in years.

And when the land moves from government use into the private sector, it will generate property taxes for the first time. As part of the tax district, that's new money that will be plowed into North Columbia rather than dispersed throughout the city.

During the 30-minute hearing, one speaker after another said the city's investments would create jobs, attract new businesses and expand the tax base.

"You hear the objection to the plan, 'It's not the right time,' " lawyer Bill Boyd said. "On the other hand, it may be exactly the right time."

Boyd and other business leaders rallied on behalf of the North Columbia tax district. But they have a stake in the riverfront plan, known as Innovista.

A $153.9 million spending plan there would support the University of South Carolina's research campus, opening the riverfront to new streets and a centerpiece park, among other things.

The chamber's Grant Jackson said it's an area that's under-utilized, full of potential.

The only two people to speak out against the plan were members of the council themselves.

Belinda Gergel and Kirkman Finlay said they could not vote for a plan to borrow money during a recession, when the council already is weighing a property-tax increase and staving off furloughs in its work force.

"I simply cannot do this," Gergel said.

"I struggle with the math," Finlay said.

Councilman Daniel Rickenmann was absent.

Voting for the plan were Coble, the outgoing mayor, E.W. Cromartie, Tameika Isaac Devine and Sam Davis.

Advocates said the city was morally bound to spread the wealth.

Davis spelled it out before the hearing, saying: "If not now, when? Nobody batted an eye for the Vista. I'll roll over and die before I say no to this."

The Vista was the benefit of the city's first tax district. Its now-busy bars, restaurants and art galleries were once crumbling warehouses.

The Vista tax district went on the books in 1986 and lasted for two decades. As property values increased, new taxes were set aside to pay for Finlay Park and the EdVenture children's museum, streetscaping projects and parking garages.

Cromartie, the council's senior member, called the new tax districts "a measured risk."

If the city does nothing, he said, the tax base in both districts will stay flat.

But as it stands, the city is buying into the concept alone. Neither Richland County nor the Richland 1 school district has agreed to participate.

Devine, who knows the proposal inside-out, said she's hopeful they might come around as the economy improves.

She said she doesn't expect the city to borrow money this year - or even next. But the council will be ready to act once the economy rebounds.

"People are concerned about the economy," she said. "People are concerned about the city's finances. People are concerned whether the numbers in this plan are real.

"They're real - not just for the projects, but they're real for the future of Columbia."