Blueprint of business incentives planned

Colorado Springs city, utility and economic development leaders will come up with a blueprint showing what financial incentives can be offered to entice a company to locate or expand here, officials said Monday.

The city previously has given rebates of personal property taxes among other financial incentives on a case-bycase basis.

But Colorado Springs City Manager Lorne Kramer told City Council members at an informal work session that if the city, utilities and Greater Colorado Springs Economic Development Corp. come up with the blueprint, all businesses will have a clear idea of what the city is willing to offer.

Kramer made the comments after Evanston, Ill.-based economic development consultant Tom Ticknor told council members that because of rising utility costs and water-connection fees, local economic development officials have lost a selling point when trying to persuade companies to expand or move to the Springs.

Ticknor told council mem- bers they “may want to reconsider” fee increases imposed Jan. 1 that boosted by about 50 percent what both commercial and residential customers pay for a connection to the city-owned utility’s water and wastewater systems.

A study that Ticknor and another consultant completed in August for the EDC shows those fees, which can cost businesses up to $430,000, to be the highest among 14 cities, including Albuquerque, N.M., and San Jose, Calif., that compete with the Springs for industry.

Councilman Scott Hente said he wants the utility to have the flexibility to make deals with companies considering moving here.

The city could, however, be accused of “subsidizing new companies” by offering them special deals, Mayor Lionel Rivera cautioned.

The blueprint — to be developed for the council within a month — will spell out “what we can and cannot do” to attract high-paying jobs to the city and will guide negotiations with companies over financial incentives, Kramer said.

“It will be important to look at economic development incentives offered by other utilities,” for guidance in developing the blueprint, he said.

Kramer also wants to incorporate utility officials into a team of city officials who help speed approval of key industrial projects.

John Cassiani, EDC’s executive vice president of marketing, said the nonprofit group welcomed Kramer’s plan, saying “to get something that makes us more flexible and responsive is nothing but good news for companies that want to expand or locate here.”

Dave Gardner, chairman of Save the Springs, a local environmental group, is worried that existing utility ratepayers will end up subsidizing new businesses through incentives.

“I’m afraid this is about shifting the cost away from new industry and onto existing ratepayers,” Gardner said. “If you reduce fees for the biggest water uses, you are really just targeting the biggest users because they get the greatest benefit from the reduction.”

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