The Central Area Tax Increment Financing District was created in 2002 to spur economic development in downtown Elgin, something city officials hope they can keep employing beyond its December 2025 expiration date. A TIF extension requires approval from the Illinois General Assembly. City staff hopes to have a plan ready to submit to the state in January, City Manager Rick Kozal told the Elgin City Council at a recent meeting. Because it affects property tax revenue from the government units within the district, negotiated agreements are needed with all of them, including School District U-46, he said. If successful, the district extension would be for 12 years, officials said. A TIF district is a geographic area in which money accrued from future property tax increases is used to pay for public improvements and economic growth within that area, according to the Illinois Department of Commerce. The idea is that future growth funded with the money will pay off later because improved properties will have higher taxable values and/or will generate other new tax revenue. In addition to the Central Area, Elgin also has TIF districts in the areas of Bluff City and along Route 20. An addition to and remodeling of The Hemmens Cultural Center in Elgin is being funded in part with money from the city’s Central Central Area Tax Increment Financing District. When complete, the city of Elgin will be able to bring in more concerts, comedy shows and theater performances, officials say. (City of Elgin) Kozal said the city lost the full benefit of the Central Area TIF during the 2008 recession and the COVID-19 pandemic. “(It took) seven years for the city to claw back what was a historic level in increment,” he told the council. “The hope is (the extension will continue) the progress the city has been making and making up the time lost.” Elgin awarded TIF money to a variety of projects this year and last, including $6.4 million to build an addition to The Hemmens Cultural Center, $2.6 million for the DuPage Court renovation and a $6.7 million economic incentive for The Courtyard at 40 development project, according to city Chief Financial Officer Debra Nawrocki. It also used TIF money to help fund the Dundee Avenue reconstruction project and provided economic incentives for the redevelopment of The Lodge at 18 Villa St., which is being remodeled into a new performing arts center, and for work needed at Side Street Studio Art’s new building on South Grove Avenue, Nawrocki said. Other smaller projects include money for a downtown streetscape maintenance plan and to paint the downtown parking lots. Elgin has $5.1 million to allocate for other initiatives in 2025, Nawrocki said. It’s expected the city council will be asked to approve the paperwork needed to seek the TIF extension in mid-December, officials said. Gloria Casas is a freelance reporter for The Courier-News.