City considering expanding TIF district to improve South Park pool in Billings

It's no secret the Billings South Park pool is in dire need of improvements, and a possible solution could be in the works.

Billings City Council members will discuss expanding the boundaries of the South Billings Boulevard Urban Renewal District in Monday's work session.

The district is funded through tax-increment financing (TIF) dollars, which are a portion of property taxes leveraged to support public projects in blighted areas. Currently the South Park pool is not included in a TIF district, even though hundreds of kids use the pool every summer.

"If it wants to stay open, it needs a lot of work and help. Especially [cuz] it's so much used by summer camps and families, not just in that area, but all of Billings," said Michelle Harkins, executive director of the Billings Industrial Revitalization District, on Monday.

As the director of the East Billings Industrial Revitalization District, another TIF district, Harkins knows much about what it takes to spur change.

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"I can see what change does and the hope of change and just the idea of it and how not only does it increase businesses coming into the area, it helps improve businesses that are already there," Harkins said.

She's overseen significant change in the E-BURD (East Billings Urban Renewal District). Now, some want to see if increasing the boundaries of the South Side TIF district can benefit in a similar way.

“The goal here is to understand what's possible with SBURA (South Billings Urban Renewal Association) expanding it, looking at pulling in the South Billings Triangle from South First Street all the way over to South 27th Street," said Billings City Councilman Scott Aspenlieder of Ward 4, which covers northwest Billings.

Expanding the boundaries of what's being called the SBBURD would allow for the use of TIF funds in areas where revitalization is much needed.

"As a city, we don't have a lot of tools. There's not a lot of levers that we can pull to encourage private investment to revitalize neighborhoods," Aspenlieder said. "Potentially look at it as a potential to help us out with South Park Pool and some of the other infrastructure needs, with water and sewer and stormwater on the South Side, that are also pretty big on the list for the City of Billings."

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Aspenlieder said it could mean more opportunities for Billings businesses on South 27th Street.

"The hope is that by expanding this TIF district, we can add more levers that we can encourage that private investment on that side of our city. Lord knows, it's desperately needed," added Aspenlieder.

It's a slew of possibilities that Harkins hopes to see in the future.

"You can see from downtown what SBURA has already done and what we've done here, that TIF motivates people. It helps the community and it just enhances the city as a whole," Harkins said.