$22M TIF Established To Help Fund Redevelopment Project In Edina

EDINA, MN — The Edina City Council recently approved about $22 million in tax incentives to help fund a quarter-billion-dollar redevelopment project near Southdale Center.

Mortensen Development and Orion Investments plan to demolish two existing buildings at the southwest corner of West 70th Street and France Avenue and replace them with a new residential/commercial complex.

The developers' $251 million plans call for a new bank branch; a 267-unit apartment building with structured parking and retail space; a commercial building with Class A office space, as well as underground parking and a plaza; and a parking structure.

Construction is expected to start in January 2023 and continue through the summer of 2025.

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Mortensen asked Edina to create a TIF district worth about $22 million across 15 years after several factors caused a previously approved plan to no longer be "economically feasible."

A tax-increment financing district, often referred to as a TIF, is an economic-development tool that many cities use to fund development projects.

When a TIF district is established, city officials complete a valuation of the area, which is used as a baseline. Tax revenues from increases in the area's assessed value — the "increment" — are diverted into an account to pay for a portion of the initial project or related infrastructure work.

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TIF districts were also established to complete projects at 50th and France, Centennial Lakes Park and Edinborough Park, according to Edina city officials. Eight TIF districts are currently active in Edina.

Developers do not receive any discounts on their property taxes if a TIF district is established, officials said.

City officials said they expect the market value of the proposed TIF district to increase by almost $170 million if it is approved. The market value would not increase at all if the TIF is rejected, officials predict.

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The TIF district could help pay for new sidewalks and streets, landscaping, a public plaza, stormwater improvements and more initiatives in the area, officials said.

Edina City Council member Ron Anderson was the only official to vote March 22 against the $22 million tax-increment financing district, noting that a vast majority of public comments from residents were against the measure.

Bill Neuendorf, Edina’s economic development manager, said he is looking forward to transforming the 70th & France site into a pedestrian-friendly campus for living, working and shopping.

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“One of the most exciting things about this project is the fact that we can completely transform the site and do it in a way that continues the legacy that’s been in the legacy of this greater Southdale district for generations,” Neuendorf said. “It’s always been a destination for commerce and for employment.”

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