Our Special Districts including DDA’s, BID’s and URA’s are have see the greatest impact during the current economic crisis. They have become our first responders in support of their businesses and projects that make our communities unique.   How can Special Districts support our commercial districts?  While there are thousands of Special Districts across the state, there are three that often focus on commercial areas  to bolster livability and economic vitality. From Downtown Denver to Montrose, these districts have incorporated placemaking, innovation and inclusion into their priorities. Now that businesses are having to navigate the uncharted territory of COVID-19, and taxing districts are seeing major declines, the threat to these districts are real and will greatly impact how they continue their mission.

REGIONAL BREAKOUT OUTCOMES

REGIONAL BREAKOUT OUTCOMES
Breakout Group 1: Existing Districts: WATCH RECORDING HERE Led by: Erin Lyng, Progressive Urban Management, Troy Bernberg, Northland Securities, and Steve Art, Wheat Ridge Urban Renewal How do these districts work with larger economic development initiatives?

• Colorado Springs
  • Relationships were key during pandemic(community banks relationships)
  • Facebook groups for networking for businesses
  • Good relationship with EDC and Chamber led to quick turn-around on variances (Public Health Dept.)
• Fountain
  • Strong communication between EDC and URA
  • Strong partnership with El Paso County for reilef
• Wheat Ridge
  • Partnership with Localworks loan programs
• Golden
  • Coordination between URA, DDA and EDC in Golden
  • Call, email people!

How are you using existing tools to support economic development?

• Colorado Springs
  • BID, DDA, URA areas, 501c3 nonprofit
  • Did small business relief grants (95 in total) at the start of pandemic
  • Looking ahead to next winter
    • Retail sales, holiday sales for small businesses
  • Marketing to businesses that the partnership can help when times are tough (grants, marketing, support network)
• Fountain
  • CARES funding for small businesses
  • Working on establishing a DDA for Fountain core (big growth in area over the last 10 years)
• Wheat Ridge
  • Small business support (CARE Acts)
  • Grant programs (205 businesses, $600k in total), PPE distribution programs
  • Support for outdoor seating for restaurants (costs related to COVID)
• Golden
  • DDA provided rent grants for April (87 businesses)- had to be impacted by closures
  • DDA/URA lent money to City of Golden for COVID relief loan programs
  • Outdoor expansion for restaurants/shops
  • Winter prep
    • Programs/investments to help businesses stay outdoors even into cold weather (surveying businesses currently)
  • CARES Act funding- creating a City-wide rent grant program
    • $300k for program, not just for downtowns

Questions

• Are people using all the different districts (URA,BID, DDA) to their advantage? (CO Springs)
  • There was no competition between those in the district
  • Advised businesses to go for everything (Federal, state, other local funds) rather than penalize businesses. Smart businesses will find everything to use

Breakout Group 2: Establishing Districts: WATCH RECORDING HERE Led by: Brandon Stam, Downtown Grand Junction Partnership, Brad Segal, Progressive Urban Management Associates, and Carolynne White, Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck What are the processes to form and how do we see that impacted by pandemic and TABOR/Gallagher?

• Pandemic is increasing need for these districts
• Communities that needed help pre pandemic will rely on these tools to help them recover
• TABOR + URA’s
  • Not subject to Tabor
  • Authorized to issue debt without going to a vote
• Gallagher
  • Difficult for a residential only project to develop tax increment
  • Repealing Gallagher would make it possible for these entities to use tax increment for things like affordable housing

How do you get over the political hurdle, eminent domain, blight, misnomer? Pitfalls in forming districts

• Planning side: a lot of this gets challenged if you haven’t done enough communication with the community about why you’re doing this
  • Ex: Not having enough public meetings FAQ’s

• Pagosa springs example: election held to limit powers of authority after it was formed
• Need legal advice from very beginning to be successful

How to find a successful community

• Need private sector champions who are going to support it
• Dynamics
  • Function: can the district benefit your community?
  • Politics: do you have the support to do it?

Recommendations for broad community messaging

• It needs to be tailored for every community
• DDA/URA messaging is broader
• BID messaging is more focused on stakeholders in your district
• BIDs formed by petition
• Different in every community

Experiences with smaller communities in Colorado

• Good results in these smaller communities
  • More people invested in the community as a whole
  • Need broad community messaging and transparency

Growth cycle with districts

• • URAs are a better choice for stagnant communities
  • BIDs are a better choice for thriving communities

Roadblocks to forming DDAs + URAs URA

• Harder to establish a new URA
• 12 month process to create a new one
• More inclusive process with multiplecommunity partners – counties and school districts etc.
• More sucessful and politically stable if done right
• Stigma with power of eminent domain +findings of blight
• 25 years with which they can collect tax increment

DDA

• Needs plan of development
• No eminent domain
• 30 years with which they can collect tax increment

Additional Resources:

• Downtown Colorado Inc. – https://downtowncoloradoinc.wildapricot.org/
• Special District Association of Colorado – https://www.sdaco.org/
• International Economic Development Council – Online Training Course – Neighborhood Development Strategies

You may also like the following:

• EDCC Main Slide Deck
• DCI | P.U.M.A. | BHFS Presentation