The Dillon Town Council is scheduled to vote on Tuesday, Nov. 7, regarding a Public Finance Agreement with a developer who has proposed a major redevelopment of the Dillon town core, according to the council’s agenda.
Developer Jake Porritt, of JGJP Dillon LLC, last month scaled back his plans for the Dillon Reservoir waterfront and is no longer envisioning a 4- or 5-star hotel and indoor amphitheater. Porritt instead proposed branded residences overlooking the lakefront, housing and retail sites in the town core and workforce housing in the town’s commercial district.
In February, the town council voted 5-2 to establish a service plan to begin the process of establishing metropolitan districts to help fund the redevelopment Porritt has called Triveni Square.
A metro district is a quasi-governmental unit that can be formed under Colorado state law. These districts have similarities to school, fire and water districts and allow developers who establish them to access certain financial tools to help fund the public infrastructure needed to support a project.
Developers establish metro districts in order to issue tax-exempt bonds, which are paid off over time with revenues generated by metro district property taxes and fees, according to a memo written by Dillon town staff. Metro districts cannot fund private components of a development.
Through the metro districts, Porritt has proposed a Public Finance Agreement and a redevelopment and reimbursement agreement with the town.
At Tuesday’s meeting, the town council will consider a resolution approving a Public Finance Agreement with JGJP Dillon LLC, according to the agenda.
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Under the terms of the Public Finance Agreement, the town would grant credits that essentially allow the developer to collect half of the town’s 2% sales tax, half the 6% lodging tax, and half the 5% short-term rental tax generated by properties in the metro districts. It would also rebate back to the developer half the 2% county sales tax generated by properties in the districts, according to the staff memo. Those revenues would reportedly be spent on public improvements or infrastructure related to the project.
The town would also receive a $700,000 lump-sum payment from JGJP Dillon LLC that is intended to compensate the town for the expected loss of base sales tax and excise tax revenues during the construction period of the project, according to the memo. That $700,000 may be used by the town for any municipal purpose, the memo states.
The Public Finance Agreement does not grant any approvals to the proposed projects and any proposed development will have to go through the town’s usual planning process, according to the memo.