Worthington City Council has approved “an economic-development grant and tax-increment-financing package to facilitate” the High North project proposal to “rebrand and redevelop the Shops at Worthington Place mall” into a mixed-use commercial space, The Columbus Dispatch reports. Council “earmarked a $2.5 million grant to help developer Direct Retail Partners with construction,” to be paid in “five installments of $500,000” toward the six-story, 75,000-square-foot class-A office building, according to the article. Economic development director David McCorkle said the grant is a payroll grant based on the expectation that the office building “would generate at least $30 million in annual payroll,” which would generate $750,000 per year in income-tax revenue for the city. Council approved a tax increment financing (TIF) package to divert a portion of the developer’s property taxes each year “to help pay for the [public parking] garage, which is expected to cost about $12.1 million.” For more, read the full article.
