A newly created tax increment financing district is now part of the St. Joseph Downtown Development Authority’s budget.
The DDA board approved the fiscal year 2026-27 budget this week, which includes early revenue from the district. Officials say the initial funding is modest and still being estimated.
City Development Director Kelly Ewalt said there are multiple projections for how much the district could generate.
“There are three levels of estimating with the TIF, a low, a medium, and high estimate. We don’t know what the tax values are going to come in,” Ewalt said.
The funding comes from increases in property values within the downtown district. Leaders expect that revenue to grow over time.
Cornerstone Alliance Senior Vice President Andrew Haan said the long-term plan includes significantly larger investments.
“There are actual projects outlined in there as well… some of those are very high-dollar things… multimillion-dollar projects. This is not accomplishing those yet,” Haan said.
The DDA said the new funding source could support larger downtown improvements as revenue increases.
