Euclid believes special taxing district will pay for multi-use trail

Euclid, Ohio — The Euclid City Council is considering creating a special taxing district to fund construction of a park-to-park trail as well as other improvements along Euclid Avenue.

Euclid Mayor Kirsten Holzheimer-Gale introduced legislation related to the potential project at the city council’s last meeting.

Her efforts will allow the city to pay for off-road construction that will connect the Cleveland Metroparks’ Euclid Creek Reservation to Euclid-Hero Park.

“We’re planning on putting in a multi-use trail along Euclid Avenue, which will essentially be a 10-foot wide trail instead of a sidewalk along the south side of Euclid Avenue,” Holzheimer-Gale explained. “This is consistent with our Euclid Avenue Transportation for Livable Communities Initiative Plan.” It also connects very well to the Metro Parks Greenway trail, which connects Euclid Creek Park to Euclid Beach Park. It fits really well with some of the other improvements planned.”

The project cost is estimated at $1.8 million.

To partially fund the idea, there would be increased taxes on landowners from the NEO Sports Park to the Heritage Business Park, which includes Eaton Aerospace.

However, this does not mean a new tax assessment.

“Essentially, it reflects the increase in taxes that are paid as your value increases. So the property value is set that year, and then as the value goes up, that additional tax that you would pay on the increase in property value is transferred into a separate fund that is used only for improvements in that area.” – Holzheimer . – Gail stated.

The portion of property taxes going to Euclid City Schools will not be affected, Holzheimer-Gale said.

“This is an exciting project that helps us achieve our mission and our vision to ensure you can remain a strong community. We are excited to continue to deliver project after project throughout the city,” she added.

Currently, the properties in the proposed area are primarily commercial. It includes several houses and a residential complex.

The tax increase will last 30 years.

“This will be a piece that will help us achieve that goal. Many of our projects actually rely on multiple sources of funding. We are fortunate to be a block grant community. We receive our own grant funding for community development. I believe we will work with the county and the state and apply for funding in a variety of ways to make this happen,” Holzheimer-Gale said.

Holzheimer-Gale said the 30-year tax increment could be used for more than just multi-purpose purposes.

Legislation shows that it can be used for a wide variety of improvements, including but not limited to curbs, sewers and on-street parking.

If the legislation passes, Holzheimer-Gale said the goal is to break ground on the project in 2025.

The resolution is in its early stages, and the next step in the process will be a committee hearing to review the finer details, which is scheduled for Oct. 30.