ABSTRACT
Real estate tax policies significantly impact urban redevelopment in many ways. The most traditional form of assistance for redevelopment is for the government to bear infrastructure and land costs. Urban renewal used eminent domain to acquire land, write-down the cost, make infrastructure improvements and then sell for vertical development. Urban economic development provides key tools for specific urban redevelopment projects. One key tool is how economic developers analyze growth opportunities, often thinking about economic clusters, businesses and institutions that support one another and result in economic growth. This chapter discussed business Improvement Districts (BIDs) which encourage owners and their tenants to upgrade both individual properties and a usually commercial district as a whole. Among the programs frequently provided by BIDs are marketing for the district, sign improvement and coordination, more frequent street cleaning, sidewalk and landscape improvement, improved, lighting and other security improvements.
