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On Tuesday, the LaGrange City Council approved a Tax Allocation District (TAD) to help pay for construction of the proposed downtown apartments.

The long-planned project would bring 144 apartments home to downtown LaGrange at the former Loy’s Office Supply on Main St.

The project was originally announced in late 2021, nearly two years later construction on the project still hasn’t started due to funding issues.

The LaGrange Redevelopment Agency previously recommended approval of a request for the TAD by developer EYC Companies.

EYC sought a pay-as-you-go TAD where they would receive a refund on the increased taxes on as the property value goes up, which would be used to repay financing for the project over 15 years.

During a previous work session, Jamie Williams, Director of Acquisitions for EYC explained that they are having difficulty obtaining funding for the project because there isn’t anything similar to compare it to in LaGrange.

Williams indicated that the project would likely be dead if they are not able to get funding through the TAD.

The TAD was unanimously approved by the council. Troup County and the school system will still need to sign off on the TAD before it goes into effect.

In other business, the LaGrange City Council:

4 Approved a rezoning for property owned by LaGrange College off of Pine Street and Vernon Street that would allow for the construction of townhomes to be used as student housing.

4 Approved UDO text amendments to modify provisions to conform with Georgia House Bill 1405 which revises provisions related to judicial review of zoning decisions.

4 Called for a public hearing on July 13 to hear comments about a proposed speed traffic camera system for use in school zones.

4 Voted to deny a claim for damages from a motor vehicle collision on behalf of William Martin and forward the claim to the city’s liability insurance.

4 Rescheduled the July 11 council meeting to July 13 due to the mayor and city manager needing to be out of town for a MEAG meeting.