Requested by the City of Wausau’s Community Development Department, this report analyzes how Wisconsin municipalities use developer incentives on Tax Increment Financing (TIF) projects and how such usage has changed with the COVID-19 pandemic. Incentives are a primary way to attract private developers to TIF projects, which are among municipalities’ main tools for promoting economic growth. The pandemic’s economic consequences might be leading developers to increase their incentive requests. As a result, understanding practices around incentives can help municipalities advance post-pandemic economic development.
The report seeks to answer six research questions. Three of these are independent of the pandemic. They address municipalities’ policies, project- and developer-related influences, and optimal practices with respect to TIF incentives. The other questions address how usage of developer grants in Tax Increment Districts (TIDs), negotiations with TIF project developers, and non-revenue TIF incentives have changed with the pandemic’s economic consequences.
UniverCity Contact Info: UniverCityAlliance@wisc.edu