HomeMy WebLinkAboutOrdinance 21743-05-2015 ORDINANCE NO. 21743-05-2015
AN ORDINANCE AMENDING ORDINANCE NO. 15733, ORDAINING j
THE CITY OF FORT WORTH'S CONTINUED PARTICIPATION IN
THE TEXAS ENTERPRISE ZONE PROGRAM PURSUANT TO THE
TEXAS ENTERPRISE ZONE ACT, CHAPTER 2303, TEXAS
GOVERNMENT CODE, BY PROVIDING ADDITIONAL POTENTIAL
INCENTIVES FOR THE INVESTMENT OF PRIVATE RESOURCES IN
PRODUCTIVE BUSINESS ENTERPRISES LOCATED IN SEVERELY-
DISTRESSED AREAS OF THE CITY; DESIGNATING A LIAISON FOR
COMMUNICATION WITH INTERESTED PARTIES; PROVIDING FOR
SEVERABILITY; AND PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
WHEREAS, the City Council of the City of Fort Worth, Texas (the "City") desires to '
create the proper economic and social environment to induce the investment of private resources
in productive business enterprises located in severely distressed areas of the City and to provide
employment to residents of such areas; and
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WHEREAS, on November 4, 2003 the City Council adopted Ordinance No. 15733
ordaining the City's participation in the Texas Enterprise Zone Program pursuant to the Texas
Enterprise Zone Act, Chapter 2303, Texas Government Code (the "Act") and outlining local
incentives available to nominated projects or activities of certain qualified businesses under the
Act; and
WHEREAS, the City Council now wishes to amend Ordinance No. 15733 to add
additional potential local incentives that could be made available to such qualified businesses;
and
WHEREAS, in accordance with Section 2303.4051(e) of the Act, on May 12, 2015 the
City Council conducted a public hearing prior to consideration of this Ordinance to receive
public comment as to the incentives applicable to the City's enterprise zone program and any
other matters related to this Ordinance, notice of which was published in the Fort Worth Star-
Telegram, a newspaper of general circulation, on May 5, 2015;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE
CITY OF FORT WORTH, TEXAS THAT:
Ordinance No. 15733 is hereby amended to read as follows:
SECTION 1.
The recitals above are true and correct and are hereby made a part of this Ordinance for
all purposes.
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Ordinance Amending Ordinance No. 15733 re:Texas Enterprise Zone Program Ordinance No.21743-05-2015
SECTION 2.
The local incentives set forth in Exhibit "A", attached hereto and hereby made a part of
this Ordinance for all purposes, are or will be made available to the nominated projects or
activities of qualified businesses that are located in any area of the City, regardless of whether
that area qualifies as an enterprise zone, on a case-by-case basis, taking into consideration the
merit of the nominated projects or activities of the qualified businesses. r
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SECTION 3.
The enterprise zone areas within the City are reinvestment zones in accordance with
Texas Tax Code, Chapter 312. {
SECTION 4.
The City Council directs and designates its Business Development Coordinator within the
Economic Development Department as the City's liaison to communicate with the Office of the
Governor, Economic Development Bank and enterprise project(s) and to oversee enterprise zone
activities and communications with qualified businesses and other entities in an enterprise zone
or affected by an enterprise project.
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SECTION 5.
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Any qualified business that requests City Council consideration of an enterprise project
nomination within forty-five (45) business days of the City's deadline to submit its original
application for designation under then-current state regulations must, at the qualified business's
sole cost and expense, complete that application or have that application completed by a
qualified individual.
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SECTION 6.
If any portion, section or part of a section of this Ordinance is subsequently declared
invalid, inoperative or void for any reason by a court of competent jurisdiction, the remaining
portions, sections or parts of sections of this Ordinance shall be and remain in full force and
effect and shall not in any way be impaired or affected by such decision, opinion or judgment.
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Ordinance Amending Ordinance No. 15733 re:Texas Enterprise Zone Program Ordinance No.21743-05-2015
SECTION 7.
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This Ordinance will take effect immediately upon its adoption.
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ADOPTED AND EFFECTIVE: May 12, 2015 i
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By:
Peter Vaky !
Deputy City Attorney
ATTEST: ,
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By: !
ary J. K y
City Secre ►
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Ordinance Amending Ordinance No. 15733 re:Texas Enterprise Zone Program Ordinance-No.21743-05-2015
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EXHIBIT "A"
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AVAILABLE LOCAL INCENTIVES
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(1) Tax abatement by the City on real and/or personal property in accordance with Chapter
312 of the Texas Tax Code and the City's then-current Tax Abatement Policies. j
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(2) Tax increment financing in accordance with Chapter 311 of the Texas Tax Code.
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(3) Freeport exemption in accordance with Chapter 11 of the Texas Tax Code.
(4) Economic development grants by the City in accordance with Chapter 380 of the Texas
Local Government Code.
5 Economic development ants b the City based on local sales tax receipts, in accordance
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with Chapter 380 of the Texas Local Government Code.
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(6) Other tax deferrals, tax refunds or tax incentives, in accordance with applicable laws and
City ordinances and policies.
(7) Support designation of the project or business site for inclusion in a Foreign Trade Zone
in accordance with applicable laws.
(8) Zoning changes and variances granted in accordance with a pp licable laws and City
ordinances and policies in order to expedite development processes.
(9) .Building Code exemptions made in accordance with applicable laws and City ordinances.
(10) Waiver of impact fees, permit fees, inspection fees and other development-related fees;
release of City liens; expedited plan reviews; and other benefits granted by and subject to
the City's Neighborhood Empowerment Zone Policy.
(11) Reduced City-charged development fees, including application fees.
(12) Waivers of City-charged permit fees,including inspection fees.
(13) Streamlined permitting processes and oversight, including one-stop permitting.
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(12) Consideration of increased fire and police protection.
(13) Implementation of crime control and prevention programs, including deployment of
neighborhood patrol officers, additional patrol support and Code Blue programs.
(14) Facilitation with public transportation providers in the City in the development of special
public transportation routes, reduced fares and other special transit issues related to the
project or business site.
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Ordinance Amending Ordinance No. 15733 re:Texas Enterprise Zone Program Ordinance No.21743-05-2015
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(15) Enhanced participation by the City in the construction of water and sewer facilities and
other public infrastructure on or around the project or business site in accordance with the
City's then-current Policy for the Installation of Community Facilities.
(16) Implementation of road repair programs.
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(17) Creation of additional parks and improvement of existing parks. Ii
(18) Transfer of abandoned property to individuals or groups at below-market rates in
accordance with applicable laws and City policies. "{
i(19) Conveyance of vacant City-owned property located in enterprise zones to qualified
businesses in accordance with applicable laws. k
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(20) Property tax exemption for historic structures and sites in'accordance with applicable
laws and City ordinances.
(21) Services to assist in promotion and marketing, including through the City's Business
Assistance Center.
(22) Assistance with workforce development issues facing the business via existing programs I
managed by the City or in which the City participates.
(23) Assistance or facilitation in job retraining programs offered in conjunction with
community colleges,technical schools and other educational institutions.
(24) Assistance or facilitation in literacy and employment skills services offered in
conjunction with community colleges, technical schools and other educational
institutions.
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(25) Assistance or facilitation in vocational education programs offered in conjunction with
local community colleges,technical schools and other educational institutions.
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(26) Assistance or facilitation in customized job training programs offered in conjunction with t
community colleges,technical schools and other educational facilities.
(27) Use of the Guinn School campus for business incubators in connection with the City's '
TECH Fort Worth and Idea Works incubators.
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Ordinance Amending Ordinance No. 15733 re:Texas Enterprise Zone Program Ordinance No.21743-05-2015
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City of Fort Worth, Texas
Mayor and Council Communication
f COUNCIL ACTION: Approved on '5/1.2/2015 - Ordi°Hance No: 21:743-05-2015 . .
DATE: Tuesday, May 12, 2015 REFERENCE NO.: G-18473
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LOG NAME: 17ED TXEZORD
SUBJECT:
Adopt Ordinance Amending Ordinance No. 15733 Regarding the City of Fort Worth's Participation in the
Texas Enterprise Zone Program Pursuant to the Texas Enterprise Zone Act, Chapter 2303 of the Texas
Government Code (ALL COUNCIL DISTRICTS)
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RECOMMENDATION:
It is recommended that the City Council adopt the attached ordinance amending Ordinance No. 15733
regarding the City of Fort Worth's participation in the Texas Enterprise Zone Program pursuant to the
Texas Enterprise Zone Act, Chapter 2303 of the Texas Government Code to update the list of potential
local incentives that may be provided to a project on a case-by-case basis.
DISCUSSION:
The City Council of the City of Fort Worth (City) previously adopted Ordinance No. 15733, under which the
City has elected to participate in the Texas Enterprise Zone Program. The Texas Enterprise Zone
Program is an economic development tool that promotes job creation and private investment, particularly
in economically distressed areas of the state. Project applicants are nominated by local communities and +
if approved by the State, a business can receive state sales and use tax refunds on qualified
expenditures. There is no financial impact to the nominating community and the amount of refund is tied
to the project's capital investment and jobs created/retained at the business site. This program is
administered through the Office of the Governor, Economic Development Bank.
The local effort section comprises 25 percent of the application scoring and there are 30 possible
incentives that may be applicable in that section. As this program has become more widely used,
competition across the state has placed a higher emphasis on the need for projects to receive points in
the local effort section. The City's current participating ordinance limits the overall potential local
incentives. In order for projects nominated by the City to score more competitively, a review of the
ordinance has been undertaken to determine if an update should include additional scoring categories that
could potentially be made available by the City on a case-by-case basis. Additionally, the City's ordinance
and application must be updated to better reflect the phrasing and language used by the State in its j
program guidelines and in Chapter 2303 of the Local Government Code. Discussions with
representatives at the Office of the Governor have confirmed that a municipality's ordinance should match
the state application so as to minimize uncertainty in applications when being scored by State staff.
The asterisk (*) below denotes items included in the existing ordinance that have historically been
interpreted by the State as potentially available and providing potential points in the application, but that
are currently phrased differently in the application which calls into question the scoring. The chart also
shows the various local incentives that are already included in our current ordinance as potentially being i
available to applicant projects, as well as those that Staff would like to add in an update of the ordinance.
Logname: 17ED TXEZORD Pagel of 3 ;
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To be
Incentive Description of Incentive Included Included
1 Tax Abatement Property tax reduction X
2 Tax Increment Financing City may adopt tax increment financing for X
projects 1
3 Freeport Exemption Exemption of in-transit inventory from X
personal property taxes
4 Chapter 380 Economic Development Grants X i!
5 Local Sales Tax Refund* Sales tax reimbursement X
Other Tax Deferrals, Tax Property tax exemption for historic
6 Refunds or Tax structures and sites X
Incentives* in accordance with applicable laws and
City ordinances
7 Foreign Trade Zone Relief from paying Customs duties and X
tariffs
8 Zoning City may make zoning changes to X
ChangesNariances* expedite development process
Buildin g Code City may provide certain building code
9 Exemptions* exemptions to expedite development X
process ;
10 Impact/inspection Fee City may waive City-charged permit fees, X
Exemptions including inspection fees I
City may allow permit applications and
11 Streamlined Permitting* supporting materials to be submitted to X
one department for distribution to j
appropriate City departments
12 Improved Fire and Police Safety and protection of City residents X
Protection*
Community Crime Neighborhood Patrol Officers, Patrol
13 Support X
Prevention Programs and Code Blue
Special Public City may provide facilitation with
14 Transportation Routes or public transportation providers X
Reduced Fares
Capital Improvements In City can provide resources for a capital
15 Water and Sewer improvement X
Facilities* plan related to water and sewer service
City's Street Department is responsible for
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16 Road Repair maintaining and repairing public City X
Streets
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17 Creation or Improvement of Parks Maintain healthy lifestyle for City residents X 1
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18 Transfer Abandoned Transfer of abandoned property to X
Housing to Individuals or individuals or
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Logname: 17ED TXEZORD Page 2 of 3
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Community Groups* groups at below market rates
Provision of Publicly Convey vacant, City-owned property
19 Owned Land for located X
Development Purposes in the enterprise zone to the business
in accordance with applicable laws
One-Stop Permitting, ;
20 Problem Resolution City may offer one-stop permitting X
Center* '
Promotion and Marketing CFW Economic Development Department
21 Service X '
and Fort Worth Chamber '
Offered in conjunction with local
22 Job Training and
Employment Services* community colleges, technical schools, X
etc. j
Offered in conjunction with local
23 Retraining Program community colleges, technical schools, X 1
etc. I
Literacy and Employment Offered in conjunction with local
24 Skills Services community colleges, technical schools, X
etc.
Offered in conjunction with focal
25 Vocational Education community colleges, technical schools, X
etc.
Offered in conjunction with local
26 Customized Job Training* community colleges, technical schools, X
etc.
27 Use of surplus schools for Use of Guinn Campus for TECH Fort X
business incubators and Idea Works incubators
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Staff recommends an update of the City's Texas Enterprise Zone Program ordinance to include the list of
potential local incentives that may be provided to a project on a case-by-case basis as outlined above.
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FISCAL INFORMATION /CERTIFICATION: j
The Financial Management Services Director certifies that this action will not increase the total
appropriations on City funds. j
FUND CENTERS:
TO Fund/Account/Centers FROM Fund/Account/Centers
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iCERTIFICATIONS:
Submitted for City Manager's Office by: David Cooke (6116)
Originating Department Head: Jay Chapa (5804)
Additional Information Contact: Jay Chapa (5804)
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Logname: 17ED TXEZORD Page 3 of 3