Mentor City Council, Adminstration Discuss Expanding Old Village CRA

The city of Mentor declared the Old Village neighborhood a .

That means businesses and even homeowners could receive tax abatements for building or expanding in the area.

However, none of the 300 or so businesses in the neighborhood have taken advantage of the offer yet, Mentor City Manager Kenneth Filipiak said during a work session with City Council Tuesday.

Moreover, a business that was building in the area anyhow -- a dentist's offer -- decided not to pursue the tax abatement, Filipiak added.

The businesses that qualify for abatements are on Mentor Avenue from Garfield Road to Little Mountain Road and Center Street from Route 84 to Prospect Street.

However, Filipiak suggested expanding the CRA so it reached as far as Tyler Boulevard and Hopkins Road.

"It would allow for a number of industrial businesses to take advantage of it," said Ron Traub, the director of economic development for the city of Mentor.

Filipiak said it would only take an ordinance from City Council to expand the CRA.

Ward One Councilman Robert Shiner asked why Council should continue with the CRA when it had not attracted any businesses to Mentor or encouraged any expansion yet.

"This doesn't seem to be working to me," Shiner said.

Filipiak replied that it was one more tool to attract businesses -- like incentive or economic development grants.

"If you're not offering (abatements,) you're already behind because a lot of communities are," Filipiak said.

Councilman Ray Kirchner said the CRA helps keep Mentor competitive with the rest of the region.

"We're trying to bring people in here onto a level playing field," he said. "We're not the only people offering abatements."

• Also during the work session, City Council and administration discussed a proposed goal the Greater Mentor Port Authority.

Mentor Assistant City Manager Tony Zampedro said the GMPA has not always had a clear purpose in the past.

"They certainly area group in search of a mission," he said.

Consequently, it was suggested the GMPA could hunt for funds and develop partnerships to address the erosion of beaches in Mentor.

Mentor Parks Director Bob Martin said the city has lost about 120 feet of beach front just this year.

The city provided printouts to City Council to show just how much beach has been lost to erosion in the last decade. (Those printouts have been attached to this story as a PDF.)