Belleville still wants a new downtown parking garage. How can the city pay for it?
In setting up funding for Belleville’s next annual budget, city leaders decided to take money set aside for a proposed downtown parking garage and use it to help support pensions for police officers and firefighters.
But city officials said the $264,000 transfer doesn’t mean they have given up on plans for a downtown parking garage that could have 200 spaces and cost $5.5 million.
The city is still waiting to hear whether the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity will authorize a $2 million grant request to help pay for the parking garage. The City Council recently decided to use the $264,000 for contributions to the first responders’ pension funds.
The $264,000 was collected as part of the city’s 0.25% home rule sales tax, revenue from which had been used to pay for the downtown streetscape. That project was paid off last summer, though, said city Finance Director Jamie Maitret.
Last May, city officials revealed that a developer wants to redevelop a block of downtown Belleville into commercial space and about 25 condominiums, but he’s only interested if the city agrees to build a parking garage on the city’s parking lot behind the historic buildings in the 100 block of East Main Street, where the former Ben’s retail store was located.
Cliff Cross, director of economic development, planning and zoning for the city, said the developer is still interested in building the lofts if the city can build a parking garage at the corner of South High and East Washington streets.
If this undisclosed developer’s plans fall through and if the city doesn’t receive the $2 million state grant, the city still wants to build the parking garage, Cross said.
Cross said the multi-level garage could cost $5.5 million and it would have a section dedicated to downtown loft residents while visitors to downtown businesses would be able to use the rest of the garage. The lofts likely would be built on the second and third floors of historic buildings on East Main Street.
“If we get that grant, that would go to pay for a significant portion of that parking garage,” Cross said.
Cross expects to hear from the state this spring as to whether the $2 million grant request will be approved.
If the parking lot is built, there wouldn’t be any charge for visitors to use the lot.
“I don’t believe in paid parking,” Cross said. “It would be free.”
Ward 1 Alderman Bryan Whitaker, chairman City Council’s Finance Committee, said he supports the parking garage plan.
“I think it will add to what we’re trying to do downtown,” Whitaker said. “We gotta a lot of good things going on.”
