Tuesday evening, Circleville Council tweaked a redevelopment district.
About five years ago, the city created a TIF around the former Thompson Plant and the other side of US 23, south of Circleville.
A "Tax Increment Financing" district, or TIF, is a self-subsidized redevelopment district where property taxes remain the same, but future increases in tax revenue are dedicated to public improvements inside the area.
City auditor Gayle Spangler said the two ordinances council passed Tuesday adjusted the TIF in response to current developments.
She said the adjustments affect only undeveloped land, changing them from a 30-year TIF with no money going towards school funds, to a 10-year TIF with 75% of the money going towards school funds.
She said something similar in Circleville is a recent 10-acre "Development Rehabilitation District," or DRD, for historic preservation around the former Everts School which is now senior retirement apartments...and a potential arts & rec center.
And the future of part of an old school wing may come into better focus soon.
The city has been slow to do anything about the gym and industrial arts wing of the former Everts School that the city has owned for a few years.
But finance chair Barry Keller said he talked to city administration about an $18,500 request study to analyze the scope of work, cost estimates, and prioritization to make the building usable for a tenant.
Keller says he will make a recommendation to his committee May 22nd to fund it. If council passes that, he says it will take two to three months to do the study.
The only likely tenant is "ArtsaRound," who has been concerned about the wooden gym floor surviving the winter in the unheated building.
Kevin Coleman regularly reports on Chillicothe & Circleville councils and local culture