Adopt the Fifth Amendment to the North Macadam Urban Renewal Plan
WHEREAS, the North Macadam Renewal Area Plan ("North Macadam Plan") was adopted by Portland City Council ("City Council") on August 11, 1999 by Ordinance No. 173651 to provide tax increment funding and urban renewal authority to foster the development and redevelopment to protect the public health, safety, and welfare of the City of Portland; and
WHEREAS, Prosper Portland, the duly organized and acting urban renewal agency of the City of Portland has prepared and adopted Resolution No. 7589 as an amendment to the North Macadam Plan ("Fifth Amendment"), to remove the last date to issue debt; and
WHEREAS, the Fifth Amendment is being adopted as a Council Approved Amendment pursuant to Section 900(B) of the North Macadam Plan. The City Council and Prosper Portland have complied with all of the requirements for adoption of the Fifth Amendment under the North Macadam Plan.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the City Council does hereby adopt the Fifth Amendment to the North Macadam Plan; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that this resolution shall become effective immediately upon its adoption.
Impact Statement
Purpose of Proposed Legislation and Background Information
Removing the last date to issue debt under the Plan allows for additional time to issue the final series of bonds to invest in the North Macadam Tax Increment Finance (TIF) district.The removal allows for the issuance of short-term debt thereby saving issuance costs, bond reserves, bond interest, and staff time required for issuance of a long-term bond under the existing June 30, 2025, deadline to issue debt.The additional resources gained by the savings will support future investments consistent with the Plan and better align with the timing of current significant project activities underway in the TIF district.Moreover, savings on interest and timeframe required for a long-term bond will accelerate taxes being returned to the City of Portland (City) General Fund and other overlapping taxing jurisdictions.
On October 30, 2024, the Portland City Council, through Resolution 37683, directed the City Administrator to lead staff across appropriate service areas to establish a working group that ensures Portland is well positioned to be awarded a Major League Baseball team. City Council further directed City staff to work with Portland Diamond Project (PDP) and ZRZ Realty to support PDP’s acquisition of Zidell Yards as the site for a world class baseball park and ensure potential development is aligned with City planning and development goals. Zidell Yards is a key development site in the North Macadam TIF District, and any future redevelopment is anticipated to require new infrastructure improvements to complete district connectivity and deliver on promises such as the completion of Bond Avenue and the extension of the greenway. As with past development projects in the TIF district, it is expected that TIF resources would be a key City tool to support infrastructure development.
PDP recently secured the opportunity to develop the 30.9-acre Zidell Yards, located in the center of South Waterfront, which is one of the last remaining large urban redevelopment opportunities in the Central City. With site control, PDP is anticipated to undertake site analysis which could extend beyond the district’s current last date to issue long term debt of June 2025. Removing the last date to issue debt supports Prosper Portland’s ability to support PDP’s analysis work and to evaluate the potential opportunity to deploy TIF resources in support of this effort, as directed in the City Council Resolution 37683.
Financial and Budgetary Impacts
Should City Council approve the Plan Amendment, staff estimates there will be an increase in net proceeds of approximately $7,500,000 to be received in FY 2025-26 to reach the district’s maximum indebtedness.
Economic and Real Estate Development Impacts
While there are no direct economic or real estate development impacts related to this action, removing the last date to issue debt in the North Macadam Plan provides an opportunity for future members of Portland City Council to consider issuing debt to invest TIF in priorities in the district after June 30, 2025.
Community Impacts and Community Involvement
No specific outreach has taken place regarding this action; however, the North Macadam TIF district budget and forecast is reviewed annually with the South Portland Neighborhood Association (SPNA) and by the Prosper Portland Community Budget Committee. SPNA’s longstanding priorities are for completion of key infrastructure improvements, including Bond Avenue, the South Waterfront Greenway, and South Portal, together with near term availability of funding for small business and Community Livability Grants within the district. This action will provide additional resources to be incorporated in the fiscal year (FY) 2025-26 budget and forecast to be reviewed with SPNA and by the Community Budget Committee as the coming year’s budget cycle begins.
100% Renewable Goal
This action does not have an impact on the City's 100% renewable goal.