News Photo by Steve Schulwitz Alpena Downtown Development Authority Executive Director Anne Gentry points down Chisholm Street on Thursday to where the DDA district could expand. An updated map of the expanded borders removed some residential properties that would have been subject to a tax increase.

ALPENA — Residential property owners who would have faced a tax increase if the Alpena Downtown Development Authority expanded its boundaries may be spared the higher tax bill.

The DDA has changed its proposed expansion map to exclude the residential properties if the Alpena Municipal Council approves new boundaries later this year.

If the expansion as previously drafted would have moved forward, property owners would pay a 1.98-mill property tax, which equates to just under $100 a year for the owner of a $100,000 house.

The revenue collected from that tax would go toward beautification projects, events, and DDA grants to business owners to help spruce up properties.

The original expansion proposal would have encompassed Chisholm Street to the bridge near MyMichigan Medical Center Alpena, River Street from the Holiday Inn Express to 9th Avenue, and more of 2nd Avenue from the city center to Clark Street. It would also include a portion of 9th Avenue near Players Pub and Grub.

The new map removes some residential properties from the proposed expansion, meaning those property owners would not be forced to pay the tax.

Anne Gentry, DDA executive director, said that, after people learned of the potential tax increase, many who lived in the residential area opposed the expansion and the higher taxes.

At public meetings, numerous people strongly condemned the idea, and some people questioned why they would have been forced to pay more money that would benefit the businesses near them but not them directly.

“We had sent out a letter to all the properties that would be in the new boundaries, and we received quite a bit of feedback,” Gentry said. “Most of the feedback from businesses and commercial property was positive, but we did get some negative feedback and concerns from other property owners, so we decided to remove many residential properties. It just made sense to do.”

The DDA is considering expanding its boundaries to help spur growth and business along Chisholm Street and a portion of River Street. It also intends to work on improvement projects with businesses that aren’t currently in the DDA and also host events intended to bolster foot traffic.

There is still work that needs to be done before the DDA expansion can be completed, Gentry said.

She said agreements with other taxing jurisdictions, such as Alpena County and Alpena Community College, need to be reached, so the DDA can capture a portion of the tax funding through what is known as tax increment financing.

Gentry said the DDA is working on the expansion and reworking its tax increment financing plan.

“Once we finalize the boundaries, the DDA board could pass a resolution, which then goes to the city council,” she said. “The county and ACC have three days to opt out of our TIF, and then the council will have the final say.”

Gentry said that, if the boundaries are expanded, it is unlikely they would expand again in the near future, because there isn’t much more room to expand.

She said it would be difficult to push the boundaries down State Avenue to include stores and shops near Starlite Beach and Mich-e-ke-wis Park because of the number of residential properties between the current boundaries and those businesses.

“The district has to be continual, so all of those homes on State Avenue would have to be included, so I don’t really see that happening,” she said.