11 October 2023
DULUTH More housing could be coming to downtown Duluth, as city officials consider whether to create a new tax-increment financing district that could aid in the redevelopment of a First Street site.
The prospective project took the first step toward becoming reality Tuesday when the Duluth Planning Commission unanimously voted to confirm that the sort of multi-family development proposed conforms with the city’s comprehensive plan for the area.
The property under consideration is located at the northwest corner of First Street and North First Avenue East, and the developer working to bring the project forward is Rob Finnigan, according to Chad Ronchetti, director of Duluth’s planning and economic development division.
The site is located across the street from the Building For Women, and was formerly occupied by a liquor store that has since been torn down.
The Planning Commission vote opens the door for the city to hire a consultant to determine whether the project would qualify for tax-increment financing, a type of subsidy, commonly known as “TIF,” that captures new tax dollars generated by a development and uses them to cover certain qualified costs. It’s a tool local governments are allowed to use only when they can demonstrate that development would not occur if not for the assistance rendered.
Ronchetti said Finnigan is still working out details as to the likely scale of the project.
There has been some discussion of continuing to redevelop property eastward from the initial project site into the 100 and 200 block of First Street, but, Ronchetti said, “That is far into the future at this point.
“The development team is simply trying to make the economics on
this
project work,” he said, adding that only when the first phase is complete will possible additional future plans come into clearer focus.
Ronchetti said the developer is looking to put up at least 70 units of housing in a building that would occupy about half a city block.
Last year, the city sought to jump-start redevelopment of the First Street corridor by offering up a pair of underutilized public parking structures for possible private use: the Tech Village Ramp at the corner of Lake Avenue and East First Street and the Medical District Ramp at 302 E. First St.
The News Tribune inquired Wednesday afternoon if the proposed development is related to either of those ramps, but had not yet received a response as of Wednesday evening.
If TIF is deemed to be an appropriate tool, the Duluth Economic Development Authority would consider the project next, and any final subsidy also would require City Council approval.
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