Wichita City Council members have approved the closing of a tax financing district in Old Town.
The Old Town Cinema Redevelopment District was established in 1999 with a project for a parking garage, a plaza and street improvements. The project included improvements to Rock Island and Mosley streets between 2nd and 3rd Streets.
The city issued close to $5 million in debt to finance the project costs, using the increases in property tax revenue from the district. Mark Manning with the city’s finance department told the council that the debts have been paid and the district has reimbursed the city’s debt service fund for all expenses from the project.
The Old Town Cinema district will be dissolved in 2024 and the full $6 million in property value will go on the tax rolls to support Wichita, Sedgwick County and the Wichita school district. The district is expected to generate about $196,000 a year in revenue for the city, and that has already been included in the revenues for the 2024 proposed budget for the city. The 2024 budget is expected to be finalized and adopted by the City Council next week.
[photo: Old Town Wichita – Facebook ]
