Moving Klondike
Forward
As the oldest African-American neighborhood in North Memphis, Klondike has a long and proud history dating to its founding in 1899.
Thank you to everyone who joined us to discuss plans for a Klondike Tax Increment Financing (TIF)!
The City Council unanimously approved the Klondike TIF District on December 20, 2022, a day after the TIF received the County Commission's approval.
The Klondike TIF is an economic development tool that will funnel increased tax revenue from the redevelopment of the Klondike neighborhood directly back into the community. TIF Funds will be used to support Klondike's infrastructure, including improving streets, building sidewalks, installing more lighting, and creating parks. The Klondike TIF District covers the area bounded by Chelsea Ave. on the north, Jackson Ave. on the south, North Watkins on the east, and I-240 on the west.
What is a TIF?
Tax Increment Financing, or TIF, is an economic development tool used to encourage economic growth by allowing developers to pursue developments that may not otherwise be feasible.
How does a TIF work?
TIFs capture the increase in property taxes resulting from new development (or the increment) and diverts that revenue to invest in infrastructure and other improvements in the TIF District. TIF Funds can only be spent inside TIF district boundaries established by local ordinance.
What are the eligible uses of TIF Funds?
CRA TIF district funds can be used to support development projects by providing financing to pay for "public infrastructure," which includes:
Affordable housing, home repair, & neighborhood community development;
Infrastructure Improvements: roads, traffic signals, streetscape and utility improvements;
Blight Remediation & Environmental Clean-up: site acquisition & hazard abatements;
Public Facility Improvements: community centers, parks, greenways, and other public uses.
Master Plan for the Inclusive Revitalization of the Klondike Neighborhood
The Klondike Partnership worked together with the community to craft this master plan for Klondike’s inclusive revitalization. This effort, when successful, will make Memphis and Klondike pioneers in the reclamation and rebirth of neglected urban neighborhoods in the U.S.
Moving Klondike Forward is underway!
The Klondike Smokey City Community Development Corporation and its partners, The Works, Inc. and Neighborhood Preservation, Inc. worked together on an historic transfer of properties from the Shelby County Land Bank. The transfer, in January of 2020, was the first step in what many hope is a path to stabilization for North Memphis.
The next step is to explore what the Klondike community wants to see in Klondike.
Thank you to all who attended the open houses and took the online survey!
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Read about the historic land transfer at the High Ground website:
https://www.highgroundnews.com/features/KlondikeSmokeyCityLandTransfer.aspx
