Unanimous approval by the Washington County Supervisors Tuesday of the Washington East Commercial Renewal Area will provide Tax Increment Financing (TIF) funds to aid with construction of a new hotel in a site at the southwest edge of the City of Washington.  The approximately 10-acre site is within the city’s two-mile jurisdiction area and, according to Deanne McCusker, City Administrator, will be annexed into the city.  The TIF agreement with Washington Hotel Group, LLC, is for a 10-year period, with funds paid annually, not to exceed a total of $1.8 million.

McCusker explained that the city has given approval for the project, now in the early planning stage, that will change the site from residential to commercial and will include other site improvements in the area near Walmart.  

There was a brief discussion of the site valuation, which for the term of the TIF agreement will remain fixed.  However, as supervisor Jack Seward Jr. noted, it is a positive development and he told the board, “Don’t stand in the way of it.”    A timeline for plans and construction is not yet set, but a rough estimate is that the hotel would be in operation in 2028.

In other business, the board:

Approved the appointment of Regina Schantz as a rural representative to the Washington Library Board.

Approved the secondary road use request for the Red Flag Horseless Carriage Tour September 29, on Coppock Road, W55, W-61, Highway 22 and Highway 92 for antique automobiles (pre-1927) throughout the day.  It is an annual event.

Approved the termination of Michael Johnston, Washington County Ambulance part-time EMT, effective June 15, who left for other employment.

Approved the annual renewal of a tobacco license for Ainsworth Four Corners, effective July 1, 2023, to June 30, 2024.

Renewed the liquor license for Richmond AmVets Post 107, effective July 11, 2023, to July 10, 2024.

Approved the appointment of three civil process servers for the sheriff’s department -- Jill Duwa, Timothy Padallia, Bernadine Milangos -- for terms from June 12, 2023, to December 31, 2024.

Renamed Terry Phillips to the Veterans Affairs Commission for another three-year term.

Appointed John Trier and Layne Twinam to three-year terms on the Washington County Land Use & Planning Commission to fill two vacancies.

Appointed Gene Hoyle to a five-year term on the Washington County Board of Adjustment and Tim Beachy to a similar one on the Wellman City Planning & Zoning Commission, ending June 30, 2028, and appointed Marcus Fedler to the Washington County Minibus Board for a three-year term, ending June 30, 2026.

Approved a lease agreement with Hillcrest Family Services for rental of office space in Building 2 at Orchard Hill for $2,586.67 monthly ($11,040 annually) from July 1, 2023, to June 30, 2024.  However, board members noted that arrangement will likely change in 12 to 18 months when some county offices will be relocated to the site.

Received a brief report from Seward about the June 14 day-long joint meeting regarding formalization of the new Southeast Iowa Regional Agency for human, health and mental health services and ancillary ones that included hiring consultants for a fee of $80,000 to $90,000 to facilitate the process from local to state control.