This week the Vermont Downtown Development Board approved the South Burlington New Town Center (City Center TIF District) as a Neighborhood Development Area. This designation provides regulatory relief as an incentive to develop mixed- income and mixed-use projects in the City’s future downtown.
Neighborhood Development Areas are a community sustainability tool available to State designated centers targeted for growth. The most notable incentive is that eligible projects will no longer require Act 250 permits.
Recent updates to State statutes make this program more viable for developers in an urban environment, where affordable housing in sorely needed and many layers of permitting exist. Newly passed legislations will allow larger developers that have projects in multiple nearby communities to qualify for this incentive as long as they meet statutory affordability requirements. All other local, state and national permitting processes will still apply to City Center projects.
“Affordable housing is a priority for South Burlington, as is the development of a new downtown - City Center; the Vermont Downtown Development Board’s action this week moves us towards both goals” said Kevin Dorn, South Burlington’s City Manager.
Source: South Burlington, 5.23.2014