By Jamie Hicks | The Jamie Hicks Show / Hicks News

LaSalle, IL — The City of LaSalle has been quietly shifting significant Tax Increment Financing (TIF) funds to cover the costs of constructing the new Public Works Garage, raising questions about transparency and the impact on local taxpayers.

Strategic Funding or Taxpayer Burden?

While TIF funds are designed to promote growth and revitalize specific areas, using them to fund city infrastructure projects—like the Public Works Garage—raises concerns. Typically, TIF dollars should directly contribute to economic development, not cover general city expenses.

Finance Director John Duncan proposed a strategic shift: instead of tapping the Parking/Impound Fund for the garage, the city used TIF funds, planning to transfer parking revenues to offset the General Fund deficit. This kind of financial juggling may balance books on paper but leaves critical questions about long-term taxpayer impacts.

Neglecting Downtown While Building Elsewhere:

"One of the most glaring concerns is the city's decision to abandon the previous Public Works building, which was located within a TIF district in downtown LaSalle. Rather than investing TIF dollars to renovate or repurpose the existing structure, the city allowed it to fall into disrepair—right in the heart of the downtown district that TIFs are meant to revitalize. The neglected building now stands as a stark symbol of mismanagement, leaving a blighted space that diminishes downtown property values and discourages new development."

This neglect not only undermines the original purpose of the TIF but also drains potential future tax revenue that could have been generated had the building been properly maintained or repurposed.

1. Diversion of Development Funds:

•    TIF funds are intended to stimulate economic growth. Redirecting these funds reduces resources available for new business incentives, infrastructure improvements, and community revitalization.

2. Hidden Taxpayer Costs:

• Though TIF districts don’t directly increase property taxes, shifting funds for non-development projects creates long-term financial gaps that the city may eventually fill through tax hikes or service cuts.

3. Transparency Concerns:

• The use of TIF for a project like the Public Works Garage wasn’t widely publicized. This raises concerns about transparency in city planning and whether residents are adequately informed about how public funds are being used.

The Long-Term Impact on TIFs

The City of LaSalle currently holds over $15 million in TIF district funds, with major obligations like the $6 million Wastewater Treatment Plant still outstanding. Using TIF dollars for the Public Works Garage limits future opportunities for genuine economic development and potentially increases the city’s reliance on taxpayer dollars to cover remaining infrastructure projects.

Additionally, by neglecting the downtown city garage—a key asset within a TIF district—the city has allowed a prime redevelopment opportunity to slip through its fingers. Instead of enhancing the economic potential of the downtown core, the city has funneled resources into a project outside the area’s immediate benefit, further stagnating the very districts the TIFs were designed to improve.

This mismanagement could reduce the future effectiveness of TIF funds, resulting in long-term stagnation for areas still in need of revitalization.

The reallocation of TIF funds to the Public Works Garage and the neglect of the downtown city garage set concerning precedents for how development dollars are spent. Without clear oversight and transparency, taxpayers could end up footing the bill for projects that should be funded through more appropriate channels—while key downtown properties sit empty and deteriorate.

Stay informed. Stay empowered. And always follow the money.

The Cost Breakdown:

• $400,000 was transferred from the Sewer Fund to cover the sewer’s proportionate share of the project.

• $800,000 was allocated from TIF Revenues, funds originally intended to spur economic development in designated TIF districts.

• Two construction contracts were awarded:

• Vissering Construction Company for $861,581

• Tieman Builders Inc. for $751,250

The total construction costs amount to over $1.6 million. To date THAT WE KNOW OF....