Developers of a new "town" on top of Aetna Mountain in Lookout Valley say it will produce over $60 million in tax revenue over a 20-year period.
The County Commission on Wednesday, with no discussion and in a unanimous vote, gave a stamp of approval for a Tax Increment Financing (TIF) taxing district for the project. That is to yield $9 million in bonds to be paid out over the 20-year period.
It will be used to build a road up the mountain and to the town center along with a sewer line.
The TIF must still be approved by the City Council, then the City Bond Board is to issue the bonds.
Members of the Black Creek Mountain development group said the plan area includes 190 acres of undeveloped land on the side of Aetna Mountain above the Cummings Cove development as well as some 2,000 acres on top of the mountain.
The road to the site will go across easements on property owned by the Tennessee River Gorge Trust.
The project is due to include a restaurant, banquet facility, ice cream parlor, a 20,000-square-foot corporate retreat and training center, a resort lodge, a 150,000-square-foot office park and an assisted living facility, according to the group headed by Doug Stein of Stein Construction.
There is to be a 10,000-square-foot village center "within the existing Black Creek development" that will include retail and commercial space as well as the restaurant and ice cream parlor, the economic impact plan says.
The town center on top of the mountain will have approximately 30,000 square feet and include retail and commercial space, it was stated.
The group is expecting to build over 1,500 new residential units and have over $500 million "of new investment in retail and commercial space, homes, infrastructure and amenities."
Officials said the TIF funds are necessary "in order to make the project financially feasible."
The plan says current taxes on the property are $32,000 for the city and county combined.
It says they are expected to be over $700,000 by the fifth year of the project, $2.3 million by the tenth year, $4.7 million by the 15th year, and nearly $8.4 million by the 20th year.
It is estimated that the number of construction and permanent jobs will range from 114 in year 1 to 265 in year 5, to 323 in year 10, peaking at 454 in year 20 of the development.