Oak Cliff Gateway Tax Increment Financing Board Recommends Using TIF Funds For Home Repairs, Displacement Mitigation
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District 1 residents asked for bond funds to go toward home repair and displacement mitigation programs — and that didn’t happen. The Oak Cliff Gateway Tax Increment Financing Board swooped in last week with a plan that sounds like a win-win: use TIF funds for those programs.
The Oak Cliff Gateway TIF was created in 1992 to encourage redevelopment in North Oak Cliff. The TIF zone was amended in 2014 to create the Bishop/Jefferson subdistrict and again in 2022 to create the Clarendon/Beckley/Kiest subdistrict.
The 2022 amendment increased the total budget capacity of the TIF district, including a new budget category for homeowner stabilization, home repair, and displacement mitigation programs, according to an April 29 presentation.
About $10.5 million is estimated to become available for housing programs, and roughly $1.2 million would be transferred annually for seven years, Economic Development Manager Sue Hounsel said during the TIF board meeting.
The Oak Cliff Gateway TIF Board’s recommendation is slated to go before the City Council’s Economic Development Committee on June 3 and before the full council on June 12.
Dallas TIF Districts
Dallas has 18 TIF districts, including the Oak Cliff Gateway, The Cedars, Deep Ellum, Design District, Fort Worth Avenue, and Skillman Corridor.
“The City’s tax increment financing (TIF) program identifies under-performing real estate in the City, develops redevelopment plans, works with private developers to implement these plans, and reinvests a portion of property tax revenues generated from new real estate development into the area to encourage the implementation of the redevelopment plan,” according to an overview on the Dallas TIF webpage.
Assistant Housing Director Thor Erickson outlined the programs that can be funded by the TIF if approved by the City Council. Those programs include the Dallas Homebuyer Assistance Program, the Home Improvement Preservation Program, and the Dallas Tomorrow Fund.
The TIF Board discussed a recommended area for program funding that can be altered at a later date.
Councilman West Supports The Plan
District 1 Councilman Chad West has grappled with North Oak Cliff residents, particularly Elmwood homeowner Christine Hopkins, who are dissatisfied with the lack of dollars allocated to keep elderly, fixed-income residents in their homes.
“The expansion of the TIF and the insertion of this program is intended to supplement city programs — which are already stood up — and supplement the amount of funding and resources available for people who live in that geographic area who need help staying in their homes through home repairs and getting up to speed on the code,” West told CandysDirt.com.
West said housing programs are a new use for the Oak Cliff Gateway TIF and he didn’t think TIF funds have been used for home repairs elsewhere in Dallas.
“Some advocates have been pushing for 2024 bond funds for a [home repair] program,” he said. “Mechanically, the use of TIF funds gets us there as well. We get to the same result, just through a different path.”
The Oak Cliff Gateway TIF also extends into District 4. Deputy Mayor Pro Tem Carolyn King Arnold, who represents District 4, has said more tools are needed to preserve affordability in Oak Cliff neighborhoods.
