Red Oxx is nearing completion of a major renovation project located at 2nd Ave North and North 12th Street in the East Billings Urban Renewal District (EBURD). As an incentive to attract this significant investment in the EBURD, the Billings Industrial Revitalization District, Inc. (BIRD) is recommending to the City Council that Tax Increment Finance funding in the amount of $45,319 be allocated to Red Oxx for the TIF eligible portion of the project.

The City Council may:
1) Approve the development agreement
2) Not approve the development agreement
3) Change the terms of the agreement

The development agreement would impact the East Billings Tax Increment Funds in the amount of $45,319. This is a one time lump sum payment ro Red Oxx for this project. These funds are available and are included in the FY13 City of Billings Budget as East Billings Development Project Incentives.

Red Oxx Manufacturing is a local manufacturer of premier luggage and travel products that is owned by Jim Markel and Perry Jones. They have a global market presence and are unique in that they manufacture, market, and ship their product all in house here in Billings. The vast majority of their sales occur via their website.  Their current facility at North 13th St and 4th Ave North is not adequate to meet their needs. To expand production capacity, they purchased a building one block away to maintain their presence in the EBURD. They currently have 10 full time employees and are looking to add between 2 and 10 jobs as part of this expansion.

The design of this project is guided by the newly adopted EBURD Form Based Code (FBC) zoning regulations. While not required to be followed since the new regulations were in draft form at the time of design, construction and permitting, the owners chose to incorporate FBC design elements into this project. The TIF eligible improvements include curb, gutter, sidewalk, and landscaping that are eligible TIF costs as per Montana Code 7-15-4288. The improvements also include back in diagonal parking to increase the parking density as well as set the form of the streetscape on both sides of the street. While these improvements are not similar to the current infrastructure in the area, they are an excellent example of the future development of the EBURD under FBC.

As the advisory body to the City Council for the EBURD, the BIRD makes recommendations regarding the expenditure of TIF funds. An EBURD TIF application was submitted by Red Oxx detailing the scale and scope of the project. At its December 13, 2011 Board of Directors Meeting, the BIRD unanimously approved a recommendation for the expenditure of EBURD TIF funds for this project. The final consideration of approval and allocation of these funds by the City Council has been scheduled to coincide with the near completion of the project. The adopted City of Billings FY13 Budget includes funds to provide as a development incentive to projects located in the EBURD.  

This action is consistent with the adopted FY13 City of Billings Budget and the project will be in significant conformance with the newly adopted EBURD FBC.