Barrington considering TIF district for downtown redevelopment

Barrington is taking its first steps toward creating a new tax increment financing district to spur redevelopment in the “Golden Triangle” area of the village’s downtown.

Officials said several steps are needed to start the legal machinery leading to the creation of a TIF district. The first is an Interested Parties Registry, through which any resident or village-based organization can apply to receive information should officials move forward with establishing the district.

A TIF district is an economic development incentive in which property taxes within the district's boundaries are frozen at their current levels, usually for 23 years. Any additional property tax revenue generated through new development is directed to a special village-controlled fund and used to pay for improvements within the district.

Adoption of the registry does not obligate the village to create a TIF district or enter into a redevelopment agreement with a developer for TIF incentives, officials said.

The village’s consideration of a new TIF comes as plans proceed for a recently approved four-story, mixed-use development in the “Golden Triangle.” The plan calls for 125 apartments, space for retail or restaurant uses, and storage for high-end and classic cars on the site bounded by Hough Street, Liberty Street and the junction of the railroad tracks.

Village Manager Scott Anderson said the TIF district would be focused on that development. The village has hired SB Friedman Development Advisors to review the site to see if it qualifies for a TIF district and could hear its findings as early as next month.

The village retired a TIF district at the end of 2023 that spurred development in the area near Village Hall.