Sedgwick County approves TIF for 69th Street North-Broadway to lift land from floodplain and spur housing

The Sedgwick County Board of County Commissioners voted unanimously April 22 to approve a redevelopment district at 69th Street North and Broadway and authorize tax-increment financing to fund infrastructure that will remove much of the site from the 100-year flood plain.

Deputy CFO Brent Shelton told the board the 145-acre site—about 84% of which lies in the FEMA 100‑year flood plain—would require roughly $4.2 million to construct a detention basin and raise development pads. The private developer plans an estimated $70 million investment in roughly 400 residential units and small industrial space, Shelton said.

"Tax increment financing is a financing tool that cities may use to fund infrastructure improvement that's deemed necessary to spur development of a site that's otherwise has some inherent problem," Shelton said, and added the city project plan will cover the whole TIF district and start a single 20‑year clock. He also noted the city will return 25% of incremental revenues to the underlying taxing jurisdictions as development begins rather than waiting until TIF debt is retired.

Shelton and staff walked commissioners through the county's fiscal review, saying the site currently generates about $800 a year in property taxes (roughly $150 to the county) and that the county faces minimal near-term risk because current tax receipts are preserved and the city and developer would bear shortfalls if the project fails to produce increments. The county's guidelines target a minimum private‑to‑public leverage of 3:1; Shelton calculated the proposal at roughly 17:1.

Commissioners asked about public‑safety implications because the fire district levies taxes; Shelton said the fire district will begin to receive incremental revenue as development proceeds. Commissioners who spoke supported the project as an example of TIF used to remediate a constrained site and generate new tax base and housing.

The board adopted a resolution to approve the redevelopment district and authorize use of TIF financing. The motion passed 5‑0.

What happens next: Park City will adopt a project plan and, if enacted, the TIF would allow incremental tax revenue to pay for the detention-basin work and related expenses for up to 20 years under the city's project-plan clock. The city and developer will be responsible for any revenue shortfalls, and the county will begin to receive incremental distributions per the project plan's sharing structure.

Why it matters: The action converts low‑revenue, flood‑prone acreage into taxable property and adds infrastructure and housing capacity, while including early revenue sharing to local taxing authorities and limits intended to keep county exposure low.