When a shopping center is built next to the new Kroger Marketplace in Franklin, tax dollars will be set aside for future infrastructure projects, such as sidewalks or trails along the highway.
A Franklin city board gave final approval to creating a new tax-increment financing, or TIF, district along U.S. 31. Tax dollars collected from new development there can be used for infrastructure improvements between Christian Boulevard to just south of the Jefferson Street intersection along U.S. 31.
That also means that money won’t go to other local governments, such as Franklin Community Schools or the Johnson County Public Library.
City officials have wanted to build sidewalks or walking trails on either side of U.S. 31 for years, but have not had the funding, they have said. Money from the TIF district would allow the city to eventually install walkways for residents walking or biking to nearby schools, grocery stores, restaurants and retail shops.
The Franklin Redevelopment Commission listed a total cost of future projects between $10 million and $20 million, which could also include improvements to drainage, according to the resolution.
That board will decide how money collected in the TIF district is spent. The TIF district will be in effect for the next 25 years.
