3.21.010: INTRODUCTION:
   (A)   Introduction:
      1.   This is the Urban Renewal Plan (the "Plan") for the Downtown West Urban Renewal Project (the "Project") in the City of McCall (the "City"), State of Idaho. Attachments 1 through 5.5 attached to Ord. 982 (collectively, the "Plan Attachments") are incorporated herein and shall be considered a part of this Plan.
      2.   The term "Project" is used herein to describe the overall activities defined in this Plan and conforms to the statutory definition of an urban renewal project. Reference is specifically made to Idaho Code §§ 50-2018(10) and 50-2903(13) for the various activities contemplated by the term "Project." Such activities include both private and public development of property within the urban renewal area. The Downtown West Project Area is also referred to as the "Project Area."
      3.   This Plan was prepared by the Board of Commissioners (the "Agency Board") of the Urban Renewal Agency of the City of McCall, Idaho, also known as the McCall Redevelopment Agency (the "Agency"), its consultants, and staff, and reviewed and recommended by the Agency pursuant to the Idaho Urban Renewal Law of 1965, Chapter 20, Title 50, Idaho Code, as amended (the "Law"), the Local Economic Development Act, Chapter 29, Title 50, Idaho Code, as amended (the "Act"), and all applicable local laws and ordinances.
      4.   Idaho Code § 50-2905 identifies what information the Plan must include with specificity as follows:
         (a)   A statement describing the total assessed valuation of the base assessment roll of the revenue allocation area and the total assessed valuation of all taxable property within the municipality.
         (b)   A statement listing the kind, number, and location of all proposed public works or improvements within the revenue allocation area.
         (c)   An economic feasibility study.
         (d)   A detailed list of estimated project costs.
         (e)   A fiscal impact statement showing the impact of the revenue allocation area, both until and after the bonds are repaid, upon all taxing districts levying taxes upon property on the revenue allocation area.
         (f)   A description of the methods of financing all estimated project costs and the time when related costs or monetary obligations are to be incurred.
         (g)   A termination date for the plan and the revenue allocation area as provided for in §50-2903(20), Idaho Code. In determining the termination date, the plan shall recognize that the agency shall receive allocation of revenues in the calendar year following the last year of the revenue allocation provision described in the urban renewal plan.
         (h)   A description of the disposition or retention of any assets of the agency upon the termination date. Provided however, nothing herein shall prevent the agency from retaining assets or revenues generated from such assets as long as the agency shall have resources other than revenue allocation funds to operate and manage such assets.
   This Plan includes the above information with specificity.
The proposed development of the Project Area as described in this Plan conforms to the 2018 McCall Area Comprehensive Plan (the "Comprehensive Plan"), as may be amended from time to time, and adopted by the McCall City Council (the "City Council"). Subject to the land use and zoning authority of the City, the Agency intends to rely heavily on any applicable design standards set forth in the McCall Downtown Master Plan, adopted by the City Council on December 19, 2013 (the "Downtown Framework"). The Downtown Framework sets forth key design guidelines and principals, preferred development concepts, mobility concepts, open space concepts and public utility/infrastructure framework concepts to guide redevelopment and development in the Project Area. To further support increasing local housing options, the Agency intends to implement the strategies set forth in the 2018 City of McCall Housing Strategy. Finally, the Agency will rely on the 2017 McCall Area Transportation Master Plan, which establishes guidelines for connectivity and preferred development concepts to support transportation and mobility options.
This Plan is subject to the Plan modification limitations and reporting requirements set forth in Idaho Code §50-2903A. Subject to limited exceptions as set forth in Idaho Code §50-2903A, if this Plan is modified by a City Council ordinance, then the base value for the year immediately following the year in which modification occurs shall be reset to include the current year's equalized assessed value of the taxable property in the revenue allocation area, effectively eliminating the Agency's revenue stream. Should the Agency have any outstanding financial obligations, the City shall not adopt an ordinance modifying this Plan unless written consent has been obtained by any creditors, including but not limited to developers who have entered into reimbursement agreements with the Agency.
A modification shall not be deemed to occur when "[t]here is a plan amendment to make technical or ministerial changes to a plan that does not involve an increase in the use of revenues allocated to the agency." (Idaho Code § 50-2903A(1)(a)(i)) Annual adjustments as more specifically set forth in the Agency's annual budget will be required to account for more/less estimated revenue and prioritization of projects. Any adjustments for these stated purposes are technical and ministerial and are not modifications under Idaho Code §50-2903A.
This Plan provides the Agency with powers, duties, and obligations to implement and further the program generally formulated in this Plan for the development, redevelopment, rehabilitation, and revitalization of the area within the boundaries of the Project Area. The Agency retains all powers allowed by the Law and Act. This Plan presents a process and a basic framework within which plan implementation, including contracts, agreements and ancillary documents will be presented and by which tools are provided to the Agency to fashion, develop, and proceed with plan implementation. The Plan has balanced the need for flexibility over the twenty (20)-year timeframe of the Plan to implement the improvements identified in Attachment 5.1 of Ord. 982, with the need for specificity as required by Idaho Code § 50-2905. The Plan narrative addresses the required elements of a plan set forth in Idaho Code § 50-2905(1), (5), (7) and (8). Attachments 5.1-5.5 of Ord. 982, together with the Plan narrative, meet the specificity requirement for the required plan elements set forth in Idaho Code § 50-2905(2)-(6), recognizing that actual Agency expenditures are prioritized each fiscal year during the required annual budgeting process.
Allowed projects are those activities which comply with the Law and the Act and meet the overall objectives of this Plan. The public-private relationship is crucial in the successful development and redevelopment of the Project Area. Typically, the public will fund enhanced public improvements like utilities, streets, and sidewalks which, in turn, create an attractive setting for adjacent private investment for mixed-use residential (single-family residential and increased density), retail, office, and commercial facilities.
The purposes of the Law and Act will be attained through, and the major goals of this Plan, are:
      (a)   The installation and construction of public improvements, including streets and pedestrian plazas; improvements to roadways, intersections, curbs, gutters and streetscapes, which for purposes of this Plan, the term "streetscapes" includes sidewalks, lighting, landscaping, benches and other street furniture, bike racks, public art and similar amenities between the curb and right of way line; installation and/or improvements to fiber optic facilities; public utilities including water and sewer improvements, and fire protection systems; other related public improvements, including improvements to pedestrian crossing facilities and parking facilities; removal, burying, or relocation of overhead utilities; extension of electrical distribution lines and transformers; improvement of irrigation and drainage ditches and laterals; and improvement of storm drainage facilities;
         (b)   To support or partner in projects expanding local housing options and leveraging the McCall Local Housing Program;
         (c)   To support or partner in the development of a community and/or recreation center;
         (d)   To support or partner in the development of a public market;
         (e)   To support or partner in projects providing additional public access to Payette Lake and the installation of other waterfront amenities, including public docks, waterfront parks and adjacent plazas, and pedestrian pathways. This includes projects supporting environmental protection of Payette Lake;
         (f)   The replanning, redesign, and development of undeveloped or underdeveloped areas which are stagnant or improperly utilized because of limited traffic access, underserved utilities, and other site conditions;
         (g)   The strengthening of the economic base of the Project Area and the community by the installation of needed public improvements to stimulate new private development providing employment and economic growth;
         (h)   The provision of adequate land for open space, parks, street rights-of-way, pedestrian rights-of-way, including pathways, pedestrian plazas and other outdoor public event space;
         (i)   The reconstruction and improvement of street corridors to allow traffic flows and pedestrians to move through the Project Area along with the accompanying utility connections throughout the Project Area;
         (j)   The provision of public service utilities such as broadband, water system improvements, sewer system improvements and improvements to storm drainage facilities (which may be located outside the Project Area);
         (k)   In conjunction with the City, the establishment and implementation of performance criteria to assure high site design standards and environmental quality and other design elements which provide unity and integrity to the entire Project Area, including commitment of funds for planning studies, achieving high standards of development, and leveraging such development to achieve public objectives and efficient use of scarce resources;
         (l)   The strengthening of the tax base by encouraging private development, thus increasing the assessed valuation of properties within the Project Area as a whole and benefitting the various taxing districts in which the urban renewal area is located;
         (m)   The funding of necessary public infrastructure to accommodate both public and private development;
         (n)   To acquire real property as may be necessary to support the above-mentioned goals; and
         (o)   Construction and maintenance of public parking facilities.
   (B)   General Procedures Of The Agency:
      1.   The Agency is a public body, corporate and politic, as defined and described under the Law and the Act. The Agency is also governed by its bylaws as authorized by the Law and adopted by the Agency. Under the Law, the Agency is governed by the Idaho Open Meeting Law; the Public Records Act; the Ethics in Government Act of 2015, Chapters 1, 2 and 4 of Title 74, Idaho Code; reporting requirements pursuant to Idaho Code §§67-450B, 67-450E, 50-2903A and 50-2913; and the competitive bidding requirements under Chapter 28, Title 67, Idaho Code, as well as other procurement or other public improvement delivery methods.
      2.   Subject to limited exceptions, the Agency shall conduct all meetings in open session and allow meaningful public input as mandated by the issue considered or by any statutory or regulatory provision.
      3.   The Agency may adopt separate policy statements. Any modification to any policy statement is a technical or ministerial adjustment and is not a modification to this Plan under Idaho Code §50-2903A.
   (C)   Provisions Necessary To Meet State And Local Requirements: Conformance with Idaho Code §§50-2008 and 50-2906.
      1.   Idaho law requires that the City Council, by resolution, must determine a geographic area be a deteriorated area or a deteriorating area or a combination thereof and designate such area as appropriate for an urban renewal project prior to preparation of an urban renewal plan. A consultant was retained to study a proposed project area and prepare an eligibility report. The eligibility report was submitted to the Agency. The Agency accepted the eligibility report by Agency Resolution No. 01-2018 on June 19, 2018, and thereafter submitted the eligibility report to the City Council for its consideration.
      2.   The area studied, which was larger than the Project Area, was deemed by the City Council to be a deteriorating area and/or a deteriorated area and therefore eligible for an urban renewal project by adoption of Resolution No. 18-14 on June 28, 2018. With the adoption of Resolution No. 18-14, the City Council authorized the preparation of an urban renewal plan.
      3.   The Plan was prepared and submitted to the Agency for its review and approval. The Agency approved the Plan by the adoption of Agency Resolution No. 2-2019 on August 19, 2019, and submitted the Plan to the City Council with its recommendation for adoption.
      4.   In accordance with the Law, this Plan was submitted to the Planning and Zoning Commission of the City. After consideration of the Plan, the Commission reported to the City Council that this Plan is in conformity with the City's Comprehensive Plan.
      5.   Pursuant to the Law and Act, the City Council having published due notice thereof, a public hearing was held on this Plan. Notice of the hearing was duly published in the Star News, a newspaper having general circulation in the City. The City Council adopted this Plan on                                    , 2019, by Ordinance No.             .
   (D)   History And Current Conditions Of The Area:
      1.   This Project Area includes approximately 52.4 acres, exclusive of rights-of-way, and encompasses a portion of the City's central business district (CBD) extending south along Third Street (Highway 55) to Stibnite Street. Despite recent investment in the broader CBD, the Valley County Assessor's data indicates approximately seventy-four percent (74%) of the parcels consisting of forty-nine percent (49%) of the land area are either vacant, deteriorated or deteriorating.
      2.   The Project Area is zoned primarily for mixed-use commercial and residential uses. A significant impediment to development is the extent of infrastructure necessary to develop the area. Development potential within the Project Area is currently restricted due to the costs to update existing infrastructure to current standards. The street surfaces are failing throughout the Project Area. The pedestrian facilities, such as the sidewalks throughout the Project Area, are broken and create hazardous walking surfaces. There continue to be sections where sidewalks do not exist forcing pedestrians to compete with vehicular traffic on narrow paved surfaces. Additionally, there is the lack of adequate storm drainage facilities, creating dangerous ponding during periods of rain and snow melt, which exacerbates the deteriorating condition of the roadways. Similarly, the lack of stormwater facilities impacts the water quality of Payette Lake (drinking water source).
      3.   The Plan proposes installation and improvements to public infrastructure and other publicly owned assets throughout the Project Area, as more specifically set forth in Attachment 5.1 of Ord. 982, including but not limited to participation in the engineering, design and construction of roadways, including streetscapes, streetlights, curbs, gutters sidewalks and other related pedestrian amenities; parking improvements; water and sewer improvements; improvements to the fiber system; storm drainage system improvements; and the development or preservation of parks and open space, including pedestrian/bike paths, creating the framework for the development of a mixed-use residential, commercial, office and retail area; improvements to the waterfront; and other community development projects.
      4.   The Project Area is underdeveloped and is not being used to its highest and best use due to the presence of a substantial number of deteriorated or deteriorating structures, deterioration of site, age or obsolescence, predominance of defective or inadequate street layout, outmoded street patterns, need for modern traffic requirements, faulty lot layout in relation to size, adequacy, accessibility or usefulness, insanitary and unsafe conditions, unsuitable topography, diversity of ownership, and defective or unusual conditions of title. The foregoing conditions have arrested or impaired the sound growth in the Project Area and have resulted in economic underdevelopment of the Project Area.
      5.   The preparation and approval of an urban renewal plan, including a revenue allocation financing provision, gives the City additional resources to solve the public infrastructure and development impediment issues in this area. Revenue allocation financing should help to improve the situation. In effect, property taxes generated by new developments within the Project Area may be used by the Agency to finance a variety of needed public improvements and facilities. Finally, some of the new developments may also generate new jobs in the community that would, in turn, benefit area residents.
   (E)   Purpose Of Activities:
      1.   Attachment 5.1 of Ord. 982 includes the Project Area Improvement List identifying with specificity the proposed public improvements and projects contemplated in the Project Area. The description of activities, public improvements, and the estimated costs of those items are intended to create an outside limit of the Agency's activity. Due to the inherent difficulty in projecting future levy rates, future taxable value, and the future costs of construction, the Agency reserves the right to:
         (a)   Change funding amounts from one project to another.
         (b)   To re-prioritize the projects described in this Plan and the Plan Attachments.
         (c)   Retain flexibility in funding the various activities in order to best meet the Plan and the needs of the Project Area.
         (d)   Retain flexibility in determining whether to use the Agency's funds or funds generated by other sources.
         (e)   Site the location of proposed improvements to support development when it occurs. Attachment 5.5 of Ord. 982 provides limited information on the proposed location of a few proposed improvements, which presents a realistic development scenario recognizing it is difficult to project with any certainty where the improvements will be sited until the future project submits plans to the City for compliance with land use regulations.
      2.   The Agency intends to discuss and negotiate with any owner or developer of the parcels within the Project Area seeking Agency assistance. During such negotiation, the Agency will determine the eligibility of the activities sought for Agency funding, the amount the Agency may fund by way of percentage or other criteria including the need for such assistance. The Agency will also take into account the amount of revenue allocation proceeds estimated to be generated from the developer's activities. The Agency also reserves the right to establish by way of policy, its funding percentage or participation, which would apply to all developers and owners.
      3.   Throughout this Plan, there are references to Agency activities, Agency funding, and the development, and contribution of public improvements. Such references do not necessarily constitute a full, final, and formal commitment by the Agency but, rather, grant to the Agency the discretion to participate as stated subject to achieving the objectives of this Plan and provided such activity is deemed eligible under the Law and the Act. The activities listed in Attachments 5.1-5.5 of Ord. 982 will be determined or prioritized as the overall Project Area develops and through the annual budget setting process.
      4.   The activities listed in Attachments 5.1-5.5 of Ord. 982 are also prioritized by way of importance to the Agency by the amounts funded, and by year of funding, with earlier years reflecting the more important activities, achievement of higher objectives, long term goals, and commitments. As required by the Law and Act, the Agency will adopt more specific budgets annually. The projected timing of funding is primarily a function of the market conditions and the availability of financial resources but is also strategic, considering the timing of private development partnership opportunities and the ability of certain strategic activities to stimulate development at given points in time within the planned 20-year period of the urban renewal district and revenue allocation area.
      5.   The study (Attachments 5.1-5.5 of Ord. 982) has described a list of prioritized public improvements and other related activities with an estimated cost in 2018 dollars of approximately fifteen million three hundred ninety thousand dollars ($15,390,000.00). This amount does not take into account inflationary factors which would increase that figure depending on when the Agency is able to develop, construct or initiate those activities. The study has concluded the capacity of revenue allocation funds through the term of the Plan based on the assumed development projects and assessed value increases will likely generate fifteen million eight hundred sixty thousand one hundred eighty-eight dollars ($15,860,188.00). The Agency reserves the discretion and flexibility to use revenue allocation proceeds in excess of the amounts predicted in the event higher increases in assessed values occur during the term of the Plan for the improvements and activities identified. Additionally, the Agency reserves the discretion and flexibility to use other sources of funds unrelated to revenue allocation to assist in the funding of the identified improvements and activities.
   (F)   [Reserved]. (Ord. 982, 10-24-2019)