Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone is a Method of Dedicated Funding for Improvements

ROCKDALE, Texas – The Rockdale City Council approved an ordinance on second reading creating the Downtown/East Cameron Avenue TIRZ #2. “This entity will establish a dedicated funding source for the City to make some much- needed improvements in Downtown Rockdale and clean up the East Cameron Avenue corridor,” Rockdale Mayor Brett Boren commented.

A Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone, or TIRZ, steers tax levy from new construction and appraisal increases within a defined area into a special fund. As this special fund builds money, it is used to fund improvements which are meant to stimulate further investment within the area, creating a positive chain reaction. The City does not lose any tax revenue with this approach. “These improvements can be everything from property clean up, drainage improvements, and placemaking activities,” described Rockdale City Manager, Barbara Holly.

In 2022, the Rockdale Municipal Development District (RMDD) commissioned a study to create a vision and plan for the East Cameron Avenue corridor. One of the plan outcomes was to install new infrastructure along the corridor, clean up blighted properties, and revise its code structure. “We now have a funding mechanism to implement elements of this plan,” Holly continued.

In 2012, the RMDD also developed a Downtown Master Plan, parts of which are being updated as part of the new Comprehensive Plan. “We can start to use this TIRZ money to clean up downtown and execute on our vision of Downtown Rockdale being a place people will want to stop and spend time,” Boren said.

The Rockdale Planning and Zoning Commission had a series of meetings in early 2023 to discuss this concept and recommended this approach to the City Council. After a

series of workshops and public hearings, the vote on October 9 was the culmination of months of work by Rockdale’s elected and appointed leadership and staff members.