ROCK HILL, S.C. (CN2 NEWS) – The City of Rock Hill notifying York County and the Rock Hill School District of its interest in a new Tax Increment Financing district or TIF. Officials say $225 million is now needed for Rock Hill’s “Southside Redevelopment Plan” — as part of the Clinton ConNEXTion.
Plans now set in place for development of the southside of Rock Hill or the Clinton ConNEXTion project now requiring funding to move forward. The City of Rock Hill proposing those funds come from a new TIF District.
Clinton College President Dr. Lester McCorn, saying, “So the city has done it’s due diligence by presenting to the City Council the redevelopment plan and there is a process that must kind of passed the muster of the other two parties so that is the City Council, the School Board and it’s the County Council.”
The Tax Increment Financing or TIF is set in place to improve what are being called “blighted areas” in the southside of Rock Hill. Those funds going toward improvements to streets, utilities, storm water, the acquisition of property.
Rock Hill Ward 5 Councilwoman, Nikita Jackson, says, “We’ve seen evidence of the TIF working. Look at Knowledge Park, look at Fountain Park — those are evidence of what TIF can do to an area. How it revitalizes, how it brings new life to an area that was blighted.”
Rock Hill Ward 1 Councilman, Derrick Lindsey, saying, “What we would do is take tracts of land, annex into the city, and then the property taxes on the land now, the County in the School Board will continue to get that, but any new development that comes from that land as its been sold and develops, it would freeze at that point.”
Leaders emphasizing that this TIF is not a tax on residents but instead will tax the project potential developers. Leaders saying they are excited for what this means for the south sides community.
“There is a history in this country of how many flows to people who are well healed and well-connected. Absent this TIF, absent this coordinated activity, cooperation, this could not happen for this community,” says McCorn.
In the video above, CN2’s Rachel Richardson is speaking with city and project leaders about how those funds will be used to push the project forward.
