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Beaumont City Council met on Dec. 12 and unanimously decided to create an ordinance designating a tax increment reinvestment zone (TIRZ) to fund downtown revitalization efforts and future infrastructure improvements. To work, a portion of the revenue from property taxes will be designated toward the TIRZ fund and is a way of reallocating existing taxes.
Beaumont City Manager Kenneth Williams assured the council and public that this is not a tax increase but, should tax revenue increase as a result of improved values, only then would those funds be reallocated.
Each proposed improvement project will be considered individually before the TIRZ Board of Directors, which will primarily be comprised of city council members.
According to June Ellis, Assistant City Manager/Operations, Beaumont had established a TIRZ fund from 1983 to 2003 within the central business district covering a much smaller region than what is covered in this recent establishment.
Williams stated that, in January, the council will vote to accept the list of proposed projects that includes an estimated $114 million waterway feature, $15 million in Civic Center improvements, and an $8.7 million Riverfront Park Extension at 555 Main Street Plaza as three substantial projects.