Panhandle Pachyderms discuss urban renewal

POST FALLS - Some issues can't be resolved in an hour.

Put urban renewal in that category, at least at the local level.

Proponents and opponents sat down for a Friday lunch during the Panhandle Pachyderms meeting at G.W. Hunters that served up urban renewal talk as the main course.

In the end, neither side likely switched teams, but Pachyderm President Reggie Correll said it was good to sit together and have the conversation.

"Thanks for taking the grilling," Correll told Lake City Development Corp. Executive Director Tony Berns, one of the featured speakers. "You're a good sport."

Berns and Kathy Sims, author of "Urban Renewal is 100 Percent Taxpayer Dollars," spoke and fielded questions from the 70 or so people.

Topics ranged from how likely it is that districts actually do take tax revenues away from cities and thereby raise taxes across the county, to the LCDC board's transparency, oversight, and questions on whether legislation should be imposed to improve regulation of the boards.

"It's being used as an economic tool with no limitations," said Ed Morse, who wanted to know if Coeur d'Alene's board supported regulations that would narrow their aid down to more specific job creation instead of aesthetic perks on private developments.

But Berns said he didn't support putting limitations on it since no other economic enhancement tools were out there other than STARS (sales tax anticipation revenues).

Washington state highly covets that kind of freedom in its economic development tools, he said.

He countered the crowd's claim that urban renewal is raising taxes by saying as those districts develop, they act as recruitment tools to develop outside the district, such as Gozzer Ranch that puts tax revenues on those books.

Sims wasn't so sure, calling Coeur d'Alene's districts on the North Idaho map "Boardwalk and Park Place" if it were a Monopoly board, highly coveted land that would have developed anyway.

"It's taxation without representation," she said, which drew light applause.

She said the city-appointed LCDC board, with two City Council members, is city-spent money without a majority vote.

That topic has been around Idaho for a while, and recently the Supreme Court decided the cities and their urban renewal boards were indeed separate entities.

"So who is in control of the board?" Mary Souza asked.

"The Legislature," Berns replied.

When asked why LCDC's districts weren't formed like some in Post Falls, with smaller districts with shorter life spans, Berns said together North Idaho's districts comprised a variety of district scopes for the different needs, as was intended when the legislation was established.

But others were concerned urban renewal was one of the only entities with some extra cash when most are struggling.

Since Post Falls recently gave URD back money to the city, would Coeur d'Alene?

It could, Berns said, as that is something that the board would likely entertain in the future as its districts get closer to closing.

One man questioned whether the old site that is now the current Riverstone Development counted as a blighted area in the first place and was ever in need of an economic revamp.

"Were there people living in tents down there that I missed?" he asked, which drew a chuckle.

"A lot of weeds is what I heard," Berns said, since the project was before his time as director.

But the club thanked Berns for the opportunity and for the discussion, and Berns in turn thanked them.

"Obviously we've only scratched the surface," he said. "That's what it's all about. There are a lot of opinions out there."