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Business Retention and Expansion <br /> Downtown Project Team <br /> Action Plan <br /> Goal: Eliminate Blight in Downtown <br /> a. Assessment agreements <br /> The project team stated that elimination of the blighted properties in downtown was high on <br /> their priority list. The project team came up with a number to tasks to accomplish this goal. <br /> Providing property owners with options on ways to demolish blighted buildings that were <br /> unused was an idea that came out of the meetings. Staff has committed to approach the <br /> building owners with an assessment agreement to demolish the buildings. The costs are <br /> assessed to their taxes with a low interest rate over a period of time. Staff will continue to <br /> provide this option to property owners in the downtown and do research on grants that may be <br /> available. <br /> b. Property acquisition <br /> The City has been in the practice of acquiring properties along the east side of Highway 61in the <br /> downtown and demolishing the building for redevelopment proposes. There are other <br /> properties in the downtown area that could be acquired for the same purpose. The project <br /> team identified this as a task to eliminate blight in the downtown. The project team <br /> recommended that the City have the same practice of acquiring properties along 145th Street in <br /> the downtown area. Identifying the properties to be acquired will be necessary. <br /> C. Fagade improvements <br /> A way to help eliminate blight is to encourage fagade improvements to existing buildings in the <br /> downtown. This will improve the overall look of the downtown and a way for business owners <br /> to upgrade their buildings without building new. The projects team recommended that the City <br /> should research grants that are available for fagade improvement and what other cities have <br /> done to help their businesses improve their buildings. Encourage property owners to organize <br /> a property clean-up day. <br /> Goal: Infrastructure <br /> a. Highway 61 <br /> In Spring of 2010 the City will complete improvement construction projects at 147th Street and <br /> Highway 61 and 130th Street and Highway 61. Both projects include turn lanes and traffic <br /> signals. The City also has a memorandum of understanding between Washington County, <br />