By Jason Crane
The North Aurora Village Board discussed an incentive request from the owners of the Gerald Ford dealership near I-88 and Orchard Road at the Committee of the Whole meeting Monday.
The discussion was a continuation from the July 20 COW meeting. The Board agreed to place the incentive request on the September 21 Village Board meeting agenda for approval.
Here are the minutes from the July 20 North Aurora Committee of the Whole meeting:
Community and Economic Development director Mike Toth explained how the Gerald Group, which operates multiple dealerships in the North Aurora Auto Mall, was looking to do a $1.8 Million renovation to its Gerald Ford location and was requesting a $900,000 from the Village over the course of 10-year period that would capture the incremental sales from the improved facility.
Doug Gerald of The Gerald Group further explained that the renovations would allow them to increase their service areas and ultimately result in additional sales. The Village would retain a minimum base price of $219,500 in sales tax revenue yearly. For reference, the Village received $258,353 in sales tax in 2019 from Gerald Ford and estimates this year it will be $235,000; the decrease is mainly due to COVID-19. By year 10 (2030) of the projected revised growth rate, the Village could potentially earn $311,638 in sales tax revenue.
Trustee Michael Lowery clarified that the Village would continue to receive approximately the same amount in sales tax revenue from previous years and that the rebate portion would come from a percentage of taxes generated by future sales. He expressed support for the incentive request from The Gerald Group.
Mayor Dale Berman, trustee Mark Gaffino, trustee Mark Guethle, and trustee Tao Martinez expressed support of the project. Trustee Martinez wanted to know if there were any direct benefits to customers, to which Doug Gerald explained their benefits would be the newer, improved, facilities and a better experience and they would use the tax rebate to help with the upfront renovation costs.
Trustee Laura Curtis said she had a concern that the Village seemed to have a growing affinity to subsidizing businesses and said she does not believe the Village should keep giving handouts to businesses in the community and felt that the Village could consider taking a more measured approach. Trustee Mark Carroll said he understood trustee Curtis’ concerns, but said the Village should encourage businesses and encourage growth and noted that there is a lot of competition from other Villages who want businesses such as The Gerald Auto Group and it is within the Village’s province to encourage that growth and maintain an image of being business-friendly, especially in today’s environment. In addition, he said that having viable businesses helps taxpayers with property taxes.
Trustee Gaffino agreed with trustee Carroll and said The Gerald Group has been a good neighbor for North Aurora. He said that he looks at each request as a standalone and although some may not be viable he believes this request to be beneficial to both parties.
Overall the Board expressed support for the incentive request and the next step will be for the Village staff members to draft an economic incentive agreement to be considered at the next Village Board meeting September 21.