City Council to hold mini-retreat Tuesday
By Kenneth Fine
Published in News on October 8, 2006 2:03 AM
Goldsboro City Council will have a mini-retreat Tuesday at City Hall to discuss funding options for the Paramount Theater and Community Building projects.
City Manager Joe Huffman said the meeting will give him an opportunity to explain his idea of utilizing tax increment financing -- which is typically used for development projects like an industrial park -- to the council members.
This option, he added, might allow the city to hold off on principal payments for a few years, he said, and has other values, also.
When Mayor Al King announced the council's decision to move forward with both projects at the same time, Huffman said his work to find a feasible funding scheme began.
And while his original recommendation to council members involved beginning work on David Weil's Paramount plan this year and holding off on the Community Building project until 2010, he said he is excited about finding a way to bring both amenities to downtown Goldsboro.
So, for the past few weeks, Huffman and his staff have looked into applying for grant money, fundraising options and other ways to make simultaneous construction happen.
Tuesday's meeting will begin at 9 a.m. and run until noon, and will be held in the large conference room on the second floor of City Hall.