City TIFs Becoming Useful Tool for County Parks

Red Arrow Park. Photo by Jeramey Jannene.

Milwaukee County Parks plans to tap a unique source of funding to plan for the future of Red Arrow Park.

The county department will develop a long-term plan for the park thanks to approximately $500,000 from the City of Milwaukee. The Milwaukee Common Council will consider the funding for the downtown park in a spending package that uses proceeds from an overperforming Tax Incremental Financing (TIF) district, as Urban Milwaukee reported.

The parks system has the largest backlog of infrastructure needs of any function of county government, excluding the cost of replacing the safety building for the circuit court system. It also lacks a dedicated source of revenue to address these needs. The department has become adept at generating operating revenue through successful business services, and it has worked out agreements with non-profits and local governments that contribute to infrastructure improvements for the system.

Using TIF revenue to finance parks infrastructure has become a new lever for the department to pull. It’s also one the department is studying in greater detail, with the help of the Wisconsin Policy Forum, as it strategizes how to manage its infrastructure needs in the long term, as Urban Milwaukee has previously reported.

The Red Arrow funding isn’t the first time city TIF funding will help finance park system maintenance. Two TIF districts provided approximately $850,000 for projects in Zeidler Union Square, Juneau Park, Cathedral Square Park and to the Oak Leaf Trail, as Urban Milwaukee has reported. Under state law, counties can’t create TIF districts, unless, like Florence and Menominee Counties, there are no incorporated municipalities in the county.

Under state law, TIF districts can expend money within a half-mile of their boundaries for public improvements. They are funded by increased property tax revenue generated by development within their borders.

The Common Council’s Zoning, Neighborhoods and Development Committee unanimously recommended the funding for approval in January. The full council will consider the spending on Tuesday, Feb. 6.

“The city deserves a lot of credit for reaching out to us and wanting to help improve spaces, whether they’re owned by the city or not,” said Jim Tarantino, deputy parks director, to members of the county board’s Committee on Parks and Culture in January.

This latest infusion of city funding will help Parks develop a game plan for the aging infrastructure at Red Arrow Park, potentially reimagining some of the beloved amenities there, like the skating rink. Most of what stands at Red Arrow Park today was built more than a decade ago, Tarantino said.

For instance, the mechanical equipment needed to run to the ice rink is roughly 20 years old and uses a refrigerant to cool the surface that the department can no longer find anywhere, he said. The department wants a plan for the park, Tarantino said, and “the timing is good because it aligns with the City of Milwaukee’s planning efforts.”

Common Council members approved approximately $5.75 million in total for infrastructure projects around the downtown area — including the money for Red Arrow Park. These projects were all original concepts that came out of 2040 Downtown Plan. “[The plan] identified Red Arrow and all of the downtown parks as catalytic projects to help bring more residents downtown,” Tarantino said.

Whatever comes of the planning effort for parks, Sup. Felesia Martin told Tarantino that she would press for roller skating to remain in the park. The department hears “loud and clear” that there’s an interest in roller skating, Tarantino said, adding that parks can consider new ideas for skating infrastructure during the planning process. Specifically, he noted, there’s the possibility of side-by-side skating amenities made of different materials: one for ice skating and one for roller skating.

Parks is also planning an expansion of roller skating at the park in 2024, he said, with extended hours during the spring, summer and fall.