A large portion of funding for the Windsor Locks’ proposed All Sports Village would come from the issuance of private Tax Increment Financing bonds, according to First Selectman J. Christopher Kervick.
The private bonds are not obligations to the town, he said. The town’s only obligation is to rebate 90 percent of the property tax paid by the development for 30 years.
“That obligation is the result of a TIF credit enhancement agreement with the developer,” Kervick said.
Voters last year approved creating a Tax Increment Financing district for the project.
The developer, Andrew Borgia of JABS Sports Management, is seeking site-plan approval from the Planning and Zoning Commission following a public hearing on Aug. 26.
Kervick added the rebate obligation only arises following payment.
“If for some reason the taxes are not paid, then there is no rebate due,” Kervick said. “We are comfortable making this commitment because the unrebated real property tax, personal property tax, and hotel revenue we will receive and retain is still much more than the municipal revenue we would receive from any other proposed use of the property.”
According to the project’s site plans, the developers are proposing eight outdoor turf fields, 20 basketball courts inside a 220,800-square-foot building, restaurants, retail shops, and two 150-room hotels.
Kervick also noted that MuniCap is the financing consultant that will be issuing the bonds.
MuniCap is a public finance consulting firm based I Columbia, Maryland, that specializes in the public finance aspects of redevelopment, according to its website. The firm also has offices in Dallas, Texas, South Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Virginia.
Kervick said the town will agree to pay the tax rebate directly to the bondholders until the bonds are paid off.
