Proposal to be reviewed could generate nearly $18.63 million during 10-year period
Sep. 18—Proponents of a special tax district at the Port of Muskogee will pitch a second plan on Tuesday that shortens the time during which ad valorem tax revenue will be captured and reapportioned for economic development.
The tax increment finance district would encompass the Port of Muskogee, including an area for which improvements are among the incentives being offered to a manufacturer being courted by port recruiters. The unnamed company reportedly plans to invest $323.49 million as it gears up during its first seven years in Muskogee.
TIF Review Committee members planned a proposal that was projected to capture and reapportion up to $16.54 million of ad valorem tax revenue during a 25-year period. Some committee members, who represent entities that rely on shares of real and personal property tax revenue collected and reallocated each year by the county, expressed concerns about the duration of the proposed TIF district and a lack of details about spending.
The proposal that will be reviewed Tuesday would generate projected revenue totaling nearly $18.63 million during a 10-year period. More than $11.13 million would be spent for flood protection and infrastructure improvements at the Port of Muskogee, and more than $1.39 million would be redistributed to the taxing entities in shares proportionate to annual allocations.
Muskogee County Assessor Ron Dean said he wanted more detailed information about how much of the TIF revenue would be spent on the port's infrastructure projects and how much would directly benefit the company being recruited. He expressed concern about the significant increase of projected costs since committee members first met in January 2020.
"Do they want this as a business incentive or for infrastructure? There just needs to be some transparency," Dean said. "We sat down with them, and I think we are going to get those details."
A summary of projected expenses shows road and rail improvements for the tract of land that would be developed for the manufacturer being recruited would cost $925,000. About $5.1 million of TIF revenue would be directed toward flood protection projects, and another $4 million would be directed toward port infrastructure projects that include dockside rail and bulkheads, dock substructures and terminal roads.
Mayor Marlon Coleman said he believes the revised proposal will satisfy the needs of the taxing entities, the port and its industry partners.
"We're pretty certain that there's going to be other companies coming into the port that is going to need that infrastructure," Coleman said. "It's going to be a lot better where they can say to a company today, 'Yes, we've got it up to standard, we don't have to make repairs or improvements while you're getting set up, we're ready to go.'"
Retired Port Director Scott Robinson told committee members during an Aug. 6 meeting that much of the increased cost is based on expectations that base flood elevation will be raised within the floodplain after the 2019 flooding. That flooding caused $2.5 million damage at the Port of Muskogee, but Robinson said port industries reported total damage of about $100 million.
Tax increment financing is a tool increasingly used by municipalities and county government to fund economic development projects. The TIF district being proposed includes an area at or near the Port of Muskogee and would include the entire assessed value of the real and personal property within the proposed district.
The committee will meet at 10 a.m. Tuesday in City Council Chambers at City Hall.
