Sturgeon Bay - Approval of TID #12 Clears Path for West Side Housing Development

Sturgeon Bay’s Joint Review Board approved on Aug. 13 the creation of a new Tax Incremental District (TID) on the city’s west side, where a developer wants to build a residential subdivision as well as storage units.

The city’s TID #12 will be retroactive to Jan. 1 of this year. It places six parcels totalling about 77 acres along Division Road, South Ridgeway Avenue and South Ridgeway Drive into a mixed-use district with a maximum life of 20 years.

The new district includes 35.43 acres where a new development is planned along Division Road with 44 single-family residential lots, 11 duplex lots and 34 storage units with optional living spaces. Thirty of the single-family lots are being designated for “workforce housing,” where specific homes will be offered at set prices to Door County workers.

Community Development Director Rebecca Kerwin said the development would also include routing an extension of the Ahnapee Trail through the project site that would separate the housing subdivision from the storage units.

“Total project costs are estimated at $4.48 million, with projected incremental value of about $38.8 million by 2046,” she said...

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Leo's notes: The project is a strong example of how municipalities can use TIF strategically—not simply to subsidize development, but to overcome infrastructure costs and make modestly priced homeownership more feasible. For communities struggling to retain working families, creating attainable ownership opportunities is every bit as important as expanding rental supply.