Waunakee Joint Review Board approves TID amendment

The Waunakee Joint Review Board approved an amendment to Tax Incremental Financing District (TID) 6 via a 5-0 vote on Thursday, April 25.

Composed of members from each of the taxing jurisdictions, the board has the final say on TID applications.

The approval was the final step needed for the TID to grow and include the 28-acre Kilkenny West development. Current plans show that the development will include residential development as well as several highly sought after commercial lots.

As the applicant, Livable Communities by Don Tierney and the Tierney family will now receive Tax Increment Financing (TIF) assistance from the village. These funds are used to aid infrastructure improvements related to the site’s development, such as roads and public utilities.

Waunakee will reimburse the Tierney family $2.8 million through the TID after the family invests $5.82 million to undertake the infrastructure improvements.

Revamping Woodland Drive, completing necessary roadways in Kilkenny West and completing lighting and landscaping installations along S. Century Avenue were some expected projects listed by village staff at the April 15 village board meeting.

The Waunakee Village Board approved the TID 6 amendment via a 4-3 vote at the board’s meeting that evening.

Village trustees were split amongst themselves during the discussion to approve or deny the request.

Some trustees argued that the development could come to fruition without the TIF reimbursement while others supported the change to ensure the prized commercial lots along Hwy. Q and Woodland Drive stayed zoned the way they were.

When Don Tierney was asked what the plan would be if the amendment was not approved on April 15, he mentioned putting the project on pause or developing the commercially zoned land for residential uses.

Ultimately, the plan for Kilkenny West will be able to proceed as it exists now following the Joint Review Board’s TID amendment approval.

TID 6 was mostly built out with roughly 80% mixed use/commercial and 20% residential land before the amendment. Its lifetime is set to expire in 2035, though village staff expected it to close earlier in 2028.

While the approved amendment does not change the district’s lifetime, staff estimated that it could push the closure back to as far as 2031.