CARRABASSETT VALLEY — A proposal to create a tax increment financing agreement with Sugarloaf USA, dedicating all new property taxes from new ski lifts, will be discussed at an informational hearing in September.

Resident Larry Warren, a former selectman and now president of Western Mountain Foundation, has approached Sugarloaf about the possibility of setting up the TIF.

Warren then approached the town and made a presentation to selectmen on Monday, Aug. 15, which received mixed reactions.

According to Warren, the major advantage of the TIF would be leveraging funds and being able to enter into inter-local agreements with other contiguous TIF districts to leverage “even more money” to obtain foundation, corporate, regional, state or federal grants.

Under the proposed TIF, tax revenue generated from new lifts for the next 20 years would be placed into a TIF account and administered by a TIF committee set up by the town. The state regulates how those funds can be spent. The money could then be used as matching funds for grants for non-motorized transportation projects that do not receive a lot of state or federal funding, Warren said.

Warren spearheaded Maine Huts & Trails and he hopes to eventually build a 180-mile recreation trail, with 12 huts, from Bethel to Moosehead Lake. Three huts at Poplar Stream, Flagstaff and Grand Falls have been completed so far.

Town Manager David Cota said Carrabassett Valley already uses reserve accounts for matching funds for grants, and leverages taxpayer dollars that way.

The town also sets aside funds in a recreation reserve account to fund motorized and non-motorized recreation, including the recreational bridge project.

If there’s a bad year, the reserve account is either funded less or not at all, he said.

A TIF could negate that local control, putting decisions into the hands of a TIF committee and out of the hands of the voters, Cota said.

The focus of TIFs has broadened thanks to the work of Warren.

About 1½ years ago, Warren said he worked with state legislators and the Department of Economic and Community Development to expand TIFs — which are designed to encourage local economic development — to include non-motorized transportation such as hiking, mountain biking and snowshoeing. These activities benefit local economies.

If Carrabassett Valley set up a TIF district, it could then join local agreements within the Franklin County TIF (from Kibby Mountain wind projects), the Somerset County TIF (from potential wind development) and possibly even neighboring Kingfield. Eustis also benefits from Kibby funds. This would allow the area to leverage three to five times as much money for trail development, Warren said.

Selectman Lloyd Cuttler credited Warren with introducing the town to the concept of leveraging funds, saying that’s how the town has been able to accomplish projects like the recreational bridge in the past.

Selectmen Chairman Robert Luce polled the board on whether it wanted to continue discussion on the issue or discount the TIF completely. Board members concurred they would like more specifics on how a TIF would work and potential benefits to the town.

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