The County Commission voted 6-3 on Wednesday morning to approve a tax abatement for the Chattanooga Choo Choo on the conversion of hotel rooms to 97 apartments.
Opposed were Sabrena Smedley, Chester Bankston and Tim Boyd.
In favor were Greg Beck, Joe Graham, Jim Fields, Randy Fairbanks, Warren Mackey and Marty Haynes.
Commissioner Boyd said the rules for Housing PIILOTs "make no mention of student-purpose housing or workforce housing."
He said, "My living room is larger than these apartments," and he said the charge of over $2 per square foot was not affordable.
Commissioner Boyd also questioned statements by Rivercity Company officials that local taxes are high, making it hard to develop downtown.
He said he was not an opponent of PILOTs in general and his remarks had nothing to do with Choo Choo managing partner Jon Kinsey.
He stated, "I suggest if this urbanite can afford $705 for a 320-square-foot apartment they can afford $740."
Commissioner Boyd said that Vision Hospitality "is putting up opulent hotels right and left" without asking for PILOTs.
He said the entire abatement would be $511,478 over the life of the PILOT.
Commissioner Boyd said downtown is thriving. "You build an apartment and it's going to get rented."
On the Main Street area, he said so much is going on that it is getting hard to find a parking space. He said he recently had to pay $5 to park on the Southside.
He said the housing PILOT rules state they do not apply to extended-stay hotels.
Commissioner Boyd said under the housing PILOT rules that if either the City Council or County Commission do not go along with a project that it does not go forward. Attorney Alfred Smith said earlier that if the city approved a project and the county did not that it still could go forward in the city.
Bill Reasor said, "The public is against this out-of-control program. It was never intended to be a boondoggle."
Mark West said the Choo Choo request was "completely at odds with the requirements of the program."
Commissioner Smedley said she had received numerous calls and emails from District 7 residents asking her to vote against the project. She said no one called her in support.
Commissioner Fairbanks said there was much misinformation about the program, including a lady who told him that PILOTs had caused her taxes to go up for the past three years.
Commissioner Graham, who again noted that he is on the Rivercity Company board, said three tight restrictions had been added to this PILOT.
Commissioner Haynes said the current taxes would continue to be paid, but there will be higher taxes for the schools.
He said he resented a statement from one of the speakers that the commission was "not listening." He said during the last year he attended 523 citizen meetings in his District 3.