Q-and-A

A quick background on urban renewal agencies:

Q: How are urban renewal agencies formed?

A: A local government, usually a city, creates an urban renewal agency. The city must hold public meetings and identify the urban renewal district’s geographic boundaries. Multiple districts may be formed. However, the value of the combined districts cannot represent more than 10 percent of the city’s base property value.

Q: How are they funded?

A: Through rising property values. As property values go up within district boundaries, the increase – or increment – flows into the urban renewal agency’s coffers. The mechanism is called tax increment financing.

Q: How long do they operate?

A: An urban renewal district can operate for up to 24 years.

Q: How many urban renewal districts exist in Idaho?

A: More than 50. Coeur d’Alene, Boise, Post Falls, Sandpoint and Hayden are examples of cities with urban renewal districts.

Q: What are the geographic boundaries of Coeur d’Alene’s urban renewal districts?

A: The Lake City Development Corp. operates two districts. The original Lake District includes 729 acres in downtown, midtown and along Northwest Boulevard. In 2003, a second district was formed to redevelop the former Crown Pacific mill near Huetter. The River District incorporates 370 acres between Seltice Way and the Spokane River.

Q: How much tax money do the two districts generate for renewal projects?

A: Since the Lake District was created in 1997, property values within the district have risen by $195 million. Those rising values will generate $1.6 million for the Lake City Development Corp.’s budget this year. In the River District, property values have risen by $49 million since the district was created, yielding $400,000 in revenue for the agency.