Toledo City Council to vote on ordinances advancing Colony development

​By Tim Schneider, Toledo Regional Chamber of Commerce

At its regular meeting on June 16 at 4:00 p.m., Toledo City Council is expected to vote on ordinances that would advance the Colony development planned by ProMedica and Continental Real Estate Co. which would include two apartment buildings, a hotel and a mixed-use structure near ProMedica Toledo Hospital. Ordinance 188-20 would approve an agreement authorizing the city to spend $1,899,840 on storm sewer and water line improvements at the site, with the developer being responsible for $700,000 of related costs. Ordinances 189-20 and 190-20 would approve 15-year, 100 percent Community Reinvestment Area property tax incentives for the increase in taxable value on the parcels. Total investment for the development is estimated to be $50 million. The property owner would be required to make payments in lieu of property taxes to Toledo Public Schools for the term of the incentives.

Council is also expected to vote on the following legislation:

• Ordinance 193-20 which would create a specific fund to accept and spend COVID-19 response funding provided to the city for purposes prescribed in the federal CARES Act.
• Ordinance 219-20 which would adopt amendments to reduce the approved 2020 operating budget by $12,954,768 mainly due to expected decreases in income tax revenue resulting from the economic impacts of COVID-19. Amendments include reducing expenditures mainly through already announced personnel and non-personnel cuts across all departments. The Capital Improvement Program transfer amount would not change, but $12,477,492 more in reserves would be used to balance the budget.

 
Council is expected to give first reading to the following legislation:

• Ordinance 207-20 which would approve an application from ConnecToledo, Destination Toledo, and city administration to expand the boundaries of the Downton Outdoor Refreshment Area (DORA). Boundaries currently include the area bounded by Summit Street, Lafayette Street, Erie Street, and Adams Street. The request would extend those boundaries eastward across the Martin Luther King, Jr. Bridge to include The Docks, southward to Clayton Street, westward to 10th Street and northward to Jackson Street with a corridor extending further north along Summit.
• Resolution 212-20 which would adopt the Downtown Toledo Transportation Study conducted by a consultant team led by Mannik & Smith Group on behalf of the city to address future transportation needs of downtown. The study recommends key roadways for improvement alternatives including designating:
  • 11th Street, 14th Street, and Jackson Street as “downtown standard streets” focused on pedestrian use and slower traffic;
  • Michigan Street, Erie Street and Washington Street as “downtown collector streets” focused on high traffic use with wide lanes;
  • Huron Street, St. Clair Street, Jefferson Avenue, and Adams Street as “downtown specialty streets” focused mainly on high pedestrian use; and
  • Monroe Street, Cherry Street, and Summit Street as “downtown signature streets” focused on qualities of specialty streets but with more traffic.

 
The public may watch the Council meeting online by visiting https://toledo.legistar.com and scrolling down to the June 16 city council meeting and clicking on “in progress”.

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​​​​​Tim Schneider
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​As Manager for Local Government Advocacy, Tim Schneider advocates for local policies and laws that safeguard and foster a pro-business environment in the Toledo Region. Tim has more than 10 years of legislative and public policy experience with the local, state and federal levels of government.