ROCKFORD, IL — Rockford City Council delayed consideration of a new tax increment financing district June 29 as a few dozen residents protested it and a potential data center.
Protesters have continued to oppose the establishment of a new tax increment financing district in an area that includes land eyed for a data center even after city officials included a provision that the TIF cannot be used to support a data center.
Ald. Gina Meeks, D-12, sought to delay a vote saying she wants time to explore new zoning changes that would regulate data centers in industrial zones.
Demonstrators carried signs that read “Save the environment: No data centers,” “Ask your alderman how you can prevent data center fires,” and “Protect our natural resources no data center.”
San Diego-based Monarch Energy has said it wants to bring a hyperscale data center that could generate tens of millions in property taxes annually to an area south of the Chicago Rockford International Airport. But opponents say such data centers drive up the cost of electricity, consume too much water and could endanger the environment.
Currently utilized as agricultural land, the area has been targeted for industrial development for two decades.
City officials are seeking a new TIF District that could lure industrial businesses to Rockford. The city has included a provision that would prohibit the district from benefitting a data center. As investments are made into development inside a TIF Districts, the additional property value creates increment that can be tapped to reimburse the developer some of the cost or to pay for public improvements.
Called the South Rockford Industrial TIF District, it includes 1,482 acres that could be attractive to industrial users because its proximity to major transportation hubs.
It would benefit Roselle-based Venture One which wants to establish a business park that could bring shipping, distribution, warehouse, cargo handling and similar facilities along with hundreds of jobs to a 166-acre portion the area. The area has access to a train lines, the airport and major highways.
Venture One has agreed to a provision in its annexation agreement with the city that it would not bring a data center to the property.
Jeff Kolkey writes about government, economic development and other issues for the Rockford Register Star. He can be reached via email at jkolkey@rrstar.com and on X @jeffkolkey.
This article originally appeared on Rockford Register Star: Rockford City Council delays TIF District amid data center protest
Reporting by Jeff Kolkey, Rockford Register Star / Rockford Register Star
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By Jeff Kolkey, Rockford Register Star | USA TODAY Network
