N. Aurora may expand special downtown taxing district

North Aurora is poised to again enlarge a tax-increment financing district aimed at spurring redevelopment through its downtown area, along and near Route 31.

There hasn't been much development since the district was created seven years ago.

The village board agreed Monday night to include the addition on the consent agenda for its Aug. 18 meeting. That means the vote will be lumped in with other routine matters - that no one objects to - in one vote.

Five areas could be added: the south side of John Street west of Route 31; the Valley Green Golf Course; the Eden Assisted Living Center and a vacant lot north of it; an area along Evergreen Drive and an area along Sullivan Road between River Road and Evergreen. It contains 19 buildings on 31 parcels, adding up to about 102 acres. The district also was enlarged in 2005.

In a tax-increment financing district, taxing bodies agree to forego any increase in property taxes they might receive as a result of property becoming more valuable. Instead, that money is used as an incentive to encourage landowners to improve their properties - for example, tearing down existing buildings and assembling properties for larger developments - by paying some of the costs. Those costs could include upgrading utilities, planning studies, engineering work or even relocation costs. So far, the money in the TIF mainly has been used to pay for improvements to building facades.

Trustee Mike Herlihy wondered whether enlarging the district will have any effect.

"Unfortunately, landowners have to be motivated to invest and partake of the TIF resources," Herlihy said. "The largest potential projects in the original TIF remain idle, and the same could be said for the second part. ... I'm curious if we are putting this out there with the intent and expectation of landowners taking advantage of it, or are we just fishing?"

Village President Dale Berman said that, for the TIF to work, the village has some work to do.

"We are not marketing the opportunity. That is certainly something we can do. If it is going to succeed and go forward, it is going to take a marketing effort on the part of the village," he said.

Route 31 is an amalgam of residential and business properties, with many different owners and no distinct architectural style. Some of the businesses are closed, including an off-track betting parlor, a Tastee-Freez, a bowling alley and a hotel. Other properties include a liquor store, houses, day-care centers, a technical school, small shops in strip malls, offices and more. Route 31 is a four-lane highway at that point.

One redevelopment taking place is the conversion of a parking lot for the OTB into the new North Aurora police station.