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TO AUTHORIZE A TAX INCREMENT FINANCING AGREEMENT WITH ROCKY FORK RETAIL LLC FOR PROPERTY LOCATED WITHIN THE CITY'S HAMILTON ROAD CORRIDOR TO PROVIDE FOR THE REDEVELOPMENT OF CERTAIN PROPERTY ALONG HAMILTON ROAD IN THE CITY; AND TO DECLARE AN EMERGENCY.
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WHEREAS, this Council, by its Ordinance No. 0027-2013, passed February 4, 2013 (the "TIF Ordinance"), has declared the improvement of certain parcels of real property located within the City as identified in the TIF Ordinance (the "TIF Area") to be a public purpose and exempt from taxation, required the owner of each parcel within the TIF Area to make service payments in lieu of taxes (the "Service Payments") to the Franklin County Treasurer, has provided for the distribution of the applicable portion of the Service Payments to the Gahanna-Jefferson City School District and the Eastland Fairfield Career Center, has established Hamilton Road Municipal Tax Increment Equivalent Fund as specified in the TIF Ordinance (the "TIF Fund") for the deposit of the remainder of such Service Payments, and specified public infrastructure improvements made or to be made that benefit or serve the TIF Area, all pursuant to and in accordance with Sections 5709.40, 5709.42, and 5709.43 of the Ohio Revised Code; and
WHEREAS, Rocky Fork Retail LLC (the "Developer") is the owner of certain real property within the TIF Area (the "Property") and intends to construct a retail development thereon to be known as "The Shops at Rocky Fork" and in connection therewith the Developer will design and construct the improvements depicted and described in Exhibit B to the attached Tax Increment Financing Agreement (the "TIF Agreement") as well as a bike path and sidewalk extension as shown on the renderings in Exhibit C to the attached TIF Agreement (the "Bike Path/Sidewalk Extension"), which improvements will directly benefit the TIF Area and the Property; and
WHEREAS, the City desires to reimburse the Developer for designing and constructing the Bike Path/Sidewalk Extension, as shown on the renderings in Exhibit C to the attached TIF Agreement, and the Developer has requested that the City reimburse the Developer for designing and constructing a portion of the improvements depicted and described in Exhibit B to the attached TIF Agreement as public infrastructure improvements eligible for funding under the TIF Ordinance (such improvements, as selected by the Developer, the "Public Improvements"); and
WHEREAS, to support the construction of the Bike Path/Sidewalk Extension and the Public Improvements, the Developer has agreed to make minimum service payments with respect to the Property (as further described in Section 7 of the attached TIF Agreement, the "Minimum Service Payments"), to supplement the Service Payments as necessary; and
WHEREAS, the City and the Developer desire to enter into the TIF Agreement to provide for the collection of the Service Payments and the Minimum Service Payments to enable the financing, design, construction and maintenance of the Bike Path/Sidewalk Extension and the Public Improvements as contemplated in the TIF Agreement, and to memorialize their mutual understandings with regard to the manner in which the Property, the Private Improvements (as defined in the TIF Agreement), the Bike Path/Sidewalk Extension, and the Public Improvements depicted and described in Exhibit B to the TIF Agreement will be developed; and
WHEREAS, it is in the best interests of the City to enter into the TIF Agreement as quickly as possible in order to make possible the timely redevelopment of the Property, the Private Improvements, the Public Improvements and the Bike Path/Sidewalk Extension, all for the preservation of the public peace, property, health, safety and welfare;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF GAHANNA, COUNTY OF FRANKLIN, STATE OF OHIO:
Section 1. That the TIF Agreement, providing for, among other things, the payment of Service Payments and Minimum Service Payments, and the development of the Private Improvements, the Public Improvements and the Bike Path/Sidewalk Extension, is hereby authorized as set forth in EXHIBIT A attached hereto and made a part hereof. This Council hereby expressly waives any requirement for competitive bidding pursuant to the City's Codified Ordinances that may be applicable to the construction of the Public Improvements or the Bike Path/Sidewalk Extension by the Developer.
Section 2. That the Mayor is authorized to execute and deliver the TIF Agreement to the Developer. This Council further hereby authorizes and directs Mayor or other appropriate officers of the City to take any other actions as may be appropriate to implement this ordinance.
Section 3. The reimbursement payments to be made to the Developer under the TIF Agreement constitute special obligations of the City payable solely from money deposited into the TIF Fund as described in the TIF Agreement. No other funds are pledged to the payment of the reimbursement payments, and neither the Developer nor any other recipient of the reimbursement payments has a right to have taxes levied for the payment of the reimbursement payments. The Minimum Service Payments and the Service Payments that are deposited in the TIF Fund are hereby appropriated to make reimbursement payments as set forth in the TIF Agreement, and the Finance Director is hereby authorized to make reimbursement payments to the Developer upon receipt of invoices from the Developer submitted in accordance with the TIF Agreement.
Section 4. This Council finds and determines that all formal actions of this Council and any of its committees concerning and relating to the passage of this ordinance were taken in an open meeting of this Council or any of its committees, and that all deliberations of this Council and any of its committees that resulted in those formal actions were in meetings open to the public, all in compliance with the law including Section 121.22 of the Ohio Revised Code.
Section 5. That, for the reasons set forth in the preambles hereto and incorporated herein by this reference, this ordinance is declared emergency legislation and will be in full force and effect upon passage by Council and the signature of approval by the Mayor.