Downtown Wheaton group remains on shaky ground
The future of a Wheaton group charged with promoting, maintaining and managing downtown remains on shaky ground after city officials postponed a discussion of whether or not to re-establish its funding mechanism — a special tax district — until they see the organization’s audited financial records. The city requires the records as part of the agreement with the Downtown Wheaton Association that established a special service area roughly seven years ago.
That agreement is set to expire in April and, if no new agreement is struck, the downtown group would most likely dissolve.
But City Manager Don Rose said Tuesday that the group had not met the financial records provision, which requires the records before Sept. 1. However, Downtown Wheaton Association President Keven Graham told the city council that a former member of the group submitted the documents in July.
City Councilman Phil Suess said any discussion over re-establishing a district should be delayed until the documents are received.
“If we move ahead with a known violation of an existing agreement, we are failing in our fiduciary role of oversight,” he said. “We have given the discretion to this organization to distribute public funds. If they cannot give us a timely report, it’s a very bad precedent moving ahead.”
The exchange got testy when former Downtown Wheaton Association President Derek Bromstead bristled at what he called “accusations” that the records had not been submitted. Suess told Bromstead to document that they had been to “make sure what is stated is true.”
Councilman Tom Mouhelis stepped in at one point and told Suess to let Bromstead speak during the exchange. The council tabled the discussion and will revisit it once the council receives the report. Graham said a new audit should be available Thursday.
The dispute has been brewing all year as Downtown Wheaton Association officials have feared since January that its organization would dissolve without a new service area. But some city council members say the additional tax on downtown business owners discourage businesses from locating downtown.
In June, Graham asked the city council to create a new service area with a lower tax for property owners within it. The tax serves as a sort of membership fee for all property owners within the district and would be reduced from 95 cents to 45 cents per $100 of equalized assessed value. However, to make up for the reduction in revenue, Graham also proposed that the city no longer capture revenue from property value increases in a tax increment finance fund and instead divert the money to the group.
As it stands, the group’s budget remains stagnant just above $200,000 from year to year because most of the properties lie within one of the city’s three downtown TIF districts.
The meeting had been intended to set a public hearing for Sept. 26 but the delay will likely push that into October.
Graham said the delay was unfortunate and that he would look into why the council had not received the documents.
“What we are trying to do is assist the city in providing a viable downtown Wheaton,” he said after the meeting. “We are trying to work with the council ... but there is a wedge between us and for what reason I have no idea.”