Oct. 20—STERLING — Sterling’s mayor and the city’s Riverfront Reimagined Commission are in talks to apply for a designation that, if approved, could provide millions of dollars in additional funding for city development.
Mayor Diana Merdian and commissioners met Wednesday, Oct. 16, to discuss the River Edge Redevelopment Zone Act, legislation that encourages economic growth through redevelopment and revitalization projects typically located in areas along the waterfront. RERZ offers tax breaks for investors and municipalities, and if Sterling gets the designation, Merdian said it could generate millions of dollars in tax breaks through the riverfront work the city has already begun.
“This costs the project just for Lawrence alone, and takes the tax credits from $3 million to $50 million,” Merdian said.
According to the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, once a city is designated, certain areas are designated as a “River Edge Redevelopment Zone.” Investors and businesses developing in these zones are eligible for several tax benefits, including property tax reductions and sales tax exemptions.
If approved, the designation could mean years of additional growth and funding for Sterling. Ron Clewer of Gorman & Co. said they are considering a two-pronged strategy to get the RERZ designation.
“The first is to work with Rep. [Maurice] West to introduce a bill that would include Sterling, Springfield and Alton,” Clewer said. “These other cities have been competing for them as well, and if we try to pass a bill and we don’t do it in collaboration with these two other cities, we could find ourselves in competition. We don’t need competition.”
Although there is no fee associated with the application, Merdian plans to present a proposal to the City Council suggesting that the city hire a lobbyist or lobbying firm to advocate on the city’s behalf with the Illinois DCEO, who will decide which communities receive the designation received.
“Tons of bills are written and filed every year, but they never get filed,” Merdian says. “With a lobbyist you have someone who fights to not only get your bill introduced, but also passed.”
The meeting also included an update from the Sterling Riverfront Foundation in which Marc Geil, co-chair of the Riverfront Commission, said the foundation has already secured $2.9 million in investor commitments for the $300 million Riverfront Reimagined project.
“The checks are already being deposited,” Geil said. “It’s a good start to things.”
