Update: The Knoxville City Council has approved the TIF resolution that would help to fund the mixed development in the Pryor Brown parking garage in Knoxville.
The resolution passed by an 8-0-1 vote. Councilman Marshall Star abstained from voting because of a conflict involving his law firm's involvement with one of the parties.
The vote will now move forward to the county commission next Monday.
Previous: Knox County leaders considered a request Monday afternoon for funding help to transform a decades-old parking garage in downtown Knoxville.
Dover Development Corp. intends to change the Pryor Brown Garage on Church Street into a mixed-use development. The developer has asked Knoxville to establish a tax-increment financing district to help raise funds for the project, which he said is based on success he's seen in other TIF projects.
"If you look around downtown Knoxville, it's really a great example of how these tools have been used to transform our downtown into the wonderful, vibrant and energetic place that it is right now," said firm principal Rick Dover.
The Knoxville City Council will discuss the measure Tuesday night, and County Commission is set to vote on the request Monday, Aug. 22.
Tax increment financing is an economic development tool used by local governments to set aside all or part of new, additional taxes generated by a project over a limited period of time to pay for public infrastructure and other improvements related to that project
Dover announced its plans for the parking garage in June. It want to build 30 condominiums on the upper floors of the garage with private parking.The developers would also like to put an outdoor venue on the roof, with retail space on the lower floors.
The garage dates to the 1920s and is believed to be one of the oldest parking decks in the country.
A year ago, the northwest corner of the garage collapsed, and last month, Knox Heritage added the garage to its Fragile 15 list.