John Coffelt, Editor

The Coffee County Budget and Finance Committee approved during the May 29 meeting to send to the full commission a recommendation to offer a tax increment financing (TIF) for a planned mixed-use development in Tullahoma.

The Tullahoma Area Economic Development Corporation (TAEDC) Director Winston Brooks said that the roughly 200-acre Summerland development will add 900 housing units (about a third of those apartments with the remainder a mix of townhomes and houses) plus 50,000 square feet of commercial space. The development will be north of town on Highway 41A. 

The TIF grant is an economic development tool where a municipality uses future tax revenue from increased property values in a designated area to fund public improvements and/or subsidize development projects.

The TIF funds will go only towards infrastructure improvement.

As it stands now, the mostly wooded, undeveloped property generates about $5,000 annually in tax revenue. The county will retain 40% of the new property taxes generated for the next 20 years. After that the county will retain the entire amount owed on property taxes, currently estimated to be over $12 million over the 20 years.  

Brooks said the county will be at no risk if the project falls through. As the project, planned to break ground in the fall, takes shape over the course of 7-8 years, the property will see additional buildings and homes, generating a higher property tax. The developer would pay for those improvements through loans and bonds then seek a reimbursement of 60% on the property taxes paid.

All of the sales tax generated from the commercial sites would come to the county as usual.

Brooks said that the state statute has a “but for” clause that requires that but for this financing, nothing happens, so the project is contingent on this financing to move forward.

Developer Chris Rudd of Beacon Companies said that the TIF covers infrastructure items like roads, water and sewer. These will be turned over to the city for maintenance.

Rudd said that he and the TAEDC have been working on this project since 2023. Not mentioning names, Rudd alluded to well-known and popular retail stores that could be coming to the commercial lots.

Tullahoma authorities have often cited a lack of commercial property available in the municipality.

“This will be a great legacy,” Brooks said.        

John has been with the Manchester Times since May 2011. John has won Tennessee Press Association awards for Best News Photo and placed in numerous other categories. John is a 1994 graduate of Tullahoma High School, a graduate of Motlow State Community College and earned a Bachelor of Arts in English from Middle Tennessee State University. He lives in Tullahoma, enjoys painting, dancing and exploring the outdoors.