Council OKs TIF funding for kitchen, bath store

McCOOK, Neb. — A brick building on B Street built in 1952 and originally used as an automotive repair shop will be turned into a kitchen and bathroom showroom, with some help from tax increment financing.

The McCook City Council Monday night unanimously approved the tax increment financing (TIF) request sought by Jeff Tidyman of Engineering International for a property at 410 East B Street. Acting as the Community Development Agency, the council approved the redevelopment plan and cost analysis of the project, required for TIF assistance. As the location of the property is in an area designated as blighted and substandard, it’s eligible for TIF.

Tidyman was present at Monday’s meeting and told the council that the building will house two companies, Engineering International and Kitchen Solvers, LLC, a franchise owned by his wife, Patty. Kitchen Solvers remodels and builds kitchens and bathrooms from start to finish with its own contractors and designers, Tidyman said and is booked until April. While the franchise is usually located in urban areas, he said the McCook store is the first of its kind in a rural area, with territory encompassing the Panhandle, west to Grand Island and south into Northwest Kansas.

In addition to being a showroom for the company, the building will be renovated for office space and assembly.

TIF captures the increase in property taxes resulting from new development and diverts that revenue to subsidize that development. According to the cost-benefit analysis, the property is currently assessed at $109,600 and after the completion of the project, the estimated valuation would be $625,000, with the difference in valuation at $515,400. With a tax levy of 1.929606, the annual projected tax shift is $9,945. Total TIF amount is $149,178 with TIF indebtedness at $104,000, to be paid back in 15 years.

City Manager Nate Schneider said the Planning Commission has already recommended approval of the redevelopment plan. At that meeting, it was clarified that if the valuation of the completed project was less than the projected $625,000, the difference would be made up by the developer, Schneider said, with actual valuations assessed by the county assessor.

Schneider added that the developer is making a substantial investment of $800,000 in the project, saying the five-to-one ratio or higher is what he likes to see in a TIF project.