ACTION REQUESTED:
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Communication from the City Manager with a Request to:
A. APPROVE a MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING with the NATIONAL RESOURCE NETWORK to Conduct a Comprehensive Analysis of Peoria's Southside.
B. ADOPT an ORDINANCE Amending the City of Peoria BUDGET for Fiscal Year 2016 Relating to the Use of the SOUTH VILLAGE TIF Fund Balance for the Memorandum of Understanding with the National Resource Network of $21,138.00.
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BACKGROUND: The National Resource Network (NRN) is a core component of President Obama's "Strong Cities, Strong Communities" (SC2) initiative, and is funded with $10 million from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The NRN is a consortium of the following private and public sector organizations: Enterprise Community Partners, Public Financial Management (PFM), HR&A Advisors, New York University's Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service, and the International City/County Management Association (ICMA). The consortium provides direct technical assistance to mayors and local leaders to develop and deliver innovative solutions to American cities to help them address their toughest economic challenges. The consortium works closely with HUD and the White House Council on Strong Cities, Strong Communities to deliver technical services and impact federal policy.
In March 2015, the City of Peoria submitted a Request for Assistance (RFA) to the NRN, seeking help to develop a commercial corridor master plan for the South Village TIF area. A team of NRN representatives visited the City in June 2015 to gather data regarding the City's request. The NRN conducted a series of interviews with City officials and local stakeholders and collected socio-economic data on Peoria and specifically, Peoria's Southside. From the data, the NRN produced an Assessment Report for the City of Peoria outlining key findings (Attachment A). Some major findings revealed that the Southside area has a heavy conce...
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