Senator says Charles Pointe, White Oaks projects set example
The Exponent Telegram
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
By Jeff Toquinto – Bridgeport News Editor
Bridgeport – As a member of the state Senate Finance Committee, Wayne County Sen. Robert H. Plymale knows all about Tax Increment Finance districts approved as a development tool by state voters in 2003.
For the past few years, Plymale has viewed several TIF districts statewide. On Tuesday, he had a chance to get up close with two of Harrison County’s TIF districts – Charles Pointe and White Oaks – and he liked what he witnessed.
“I’ve seen several of the TIF projects that are post projects (for TIF). Some of those have not been done right and are poster projects for what not to do,” Plymale said. “(White Oaks and Charles Pointe) are done right in all aspects … The rest of the state can follow their lead.”
TIF, which freezes values on property and uses the increased property value increments to help fund projects through bond sales, was a key part of a Tuesday discussion of the Senate Finance Committee. The committee meeting was one of the final meetings of the three-day interim session of the West Virginia Legislature in Bridgeport.
Plymale joined several committee members touring White Oaks and Charles Pointe Tuesday.
The first tour had Woody Thrasher of White Oaks explaining how TIF has helped fund 40 percent of the $22 million of infrastructure work being done there.
The infrastructure work is the first part of the high-end business park Thrasher and partners Jack Keeley and Dean Ramsey are handling. Already, most of the earth work for the site is complete.
“This would have eventually developed here without the TIF dollars, but it wouldn’t have developed nearly as fast and it wouldn’t have developed as it’s being developed without TIF,” Thrasher said.
Thrasher told those gathered of the businesses coming to White Oaks, specifically the corporate headquarter of the law firm Steptoe & Johnson. He added that the site could very well be the home of another major business.
“We’re in negotiations with another Fortune 100 company to locate here … It could mean up to 300 jobs for the area,” Thrasher said.
While TIF dominated discussion, Finance Committee Chairman Walt Helmick of Pocahontas County hit on a number of other areas. Helmick led discussion on infrastructure, consolidation of public service districts, utility rates and working with the Department of Transportation.
Many of those same topics, specifically TIF, were discussed with officials from Charles Pointe following the tour of White Oaks. Jamie Corton, managing member of Genesis Partners, the group handling development of the $1.4 billion planned community, gave a 30-minute presentation detailing the project. That was followed by another tour, this time through Charles Pointe.
“We couldn’t do this without (TIF) … It works,” Corton said.
Corton talked about existing projects on the commercial front and the activity taking place on the residential side of Charles Pointe. He also talked about ongoing plans and studies for the long-talked about YMCA.
Corton’s discussion centered on TIF and touched on several other areas. He talked in detail of the collaboration between public and private entities and the cooperation from city, county and state officials to make Charles Pointe a reality. Corton and those involved with White Oaks also emphasized the importance of infrastructure.
“Without infrastructure, you don’t have this development,” said Chad Riley, White Oaks project manager. “You have a business cluster in this area that is an investment of state, local and federal governments working together for the past 20 years. It’s now starting to pay off in a big way.”