KANNAPOLIS — More than two years ago, the The Development Finance Initiative (DFI) of the UNC School of Government worked with the city to begin to explore how Kannapolis might make the best use of Midway.

At the last city council meeting, the members voted 4-3 to set aside $250,000 to take those original thoughts and begin to fine tune them into a Midway Revitalization Project.

In the initial discussions, DFI suggested, just as with the city’s downtown development, that there needs to be catalysts that will spur private development. A number of things could be considered, including affordable, multi-family housing; improvements in code enforcement; streetscape enhancement; creating a park or open space; and parking. But there were no specific decisions made, since the city was in the throes of the downtown work.

Richard Smith, the city’s planning director, reminded the council of the original discussions and suggestions from DFI but encouraged the council to continue to consider several key issues for the area: lack of property control, private development that would likely require public/private partnership and expectations of outcomes including smaller sites with smaller scale redevelopment, similar to downtown spaces. He said the city needs to determine the goals it hopes to achieve in the area and above all to be patient, as it’s a complicated issue.

Part of the hope is that the renewed focus from the city will increase interest from private investors who may purchase property in the area and invest in business and growth alongside the city.

He suggested the council consider creating an Urban Redevelopment Commission, saying the council could in fact serve as the commission itself, and the commission could then hire consultants to help inventory properties, including those that may be considered blight properties, and to create a redevelopment plan.

“Input from property owners and the public is also essential,” he said. Identifying potential catalyst sites and creating a streetscape master plan that includes utility improvements is also important.

The budget amendment that was approved stated, “A capital project fund is set up for this project due to its anticipated cost, its spanning over multiple fiscal years and the need to potentially issue new debt related to this project. (Community Development Block Grant) funds may also be used for this project. These initial funds will establish the financial resources to fully define
the project and potentially begin initial design work or other activities.” Which means this initial $250,000 is just the beginning, but Smith noted that the city can and should consider applying for other funding, including the CDBG mentioned in the description along with a possible EPA assessment grant and other monies.

In addition, the council voted unanimously to set aside capital project funds of $888,232 – which represents one cent on the FY 2025 tax rate — to establish a project fund for future downtown economic development efforts. There is no actual project for which the funds are designated right now, but each year for five years the same amount will be set aside so if and when a new project is identified, the city will already have a certain amount in account ready to start.

“This is primarily an accounting function,” said Councilor Ryan Dayvault. “We just set it aside until we decide to either use it or return it to the fund balance.”