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The Florissant City Council heard a presentation from Inland Development Group regarding the company’s proposal for developing Plaza Madrid.

The strip mall, on New Halls Ferry Road between Parker Road and Parker Spur, was built in 1970. When it was annexed into the city a few years ago, along with residential areas nearby, the city administration said it would work to redevelop the area. However, the city has not been successful in attracting a redeveloper, in part because the property is not as big as many redevelopers would like.

Inland Development Group’s plan would be a $12 million redevelopment project. The project would include a Dollar store and convenience store. The entire center would be torn down, and new buildings built.

Inland Development Group is asking for $4.5 million in Tax Increment Financing (TIF). The group has proposed a completion date of October, 2014.

This proposal to the council is the first step in the redevelopment process. Next, the council would have to pass a bill naming

Inland Development Group as the preferred developer. Then, the project would have to go through the TIF Commission

“I’m excited that we have a developer,” Mayor Tom Schneider said in an interview this week. He said that the property was under contract. “We are light years from where we’ve been on this and I’m optimistic that this will happen and that it will be a catalyst for the entire intersection.”

As far as the TIF is concerned, Schneider said he was not opposed. “We don’t use it very often,” he said. “We used it for Cross Keys, and it was a great tool to get it developed.”

Plaza Madrid has gone  several years without progress, Schneider said. “This is the textbook justification for using TIF,” he said. “I think we should use it occasionally,” he continued, “when it’s very compelling.”

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