Broadway property owners and residents voted to create a new general improvement district, increasing property taxes in the area to fund neighborhood amenities.
About 1,200 ballots were sent to voters within the GID’s voting boundaries. The ballot asked three questions:
- Should a GID be formed?
- Should property taxes be increased by 8.96 mills to fund the GID?
- Should debt be authorized for the GID?
A total of 261 voters in the district returned a ballot, with about 70 percent voting to form the Broadway General Improvement District. The other two questions — about taxes and debt — passed with smaller margins, something new Broadway GID President Luke Johnson attributed to not communicating “clearly enough to voters that all three questions are intertwined.”
The Broadway GID joins a growing number of special tax districts in Denver. Aside from the newly formed GID, there are five other GIDs and 12 business improvement districts across the city. The business districts only collect increased property taxes from commercial real estate.
Broadway’s GID will collect 8.96 extra tax mills on the assessed value of both commercial and residential properties. For a commercial property worth $1 million, that’s about $2,400 extra per year under current tax rates. A $1 million residential property would see a hike of about $560. The owners of less valuable properties will pay less.
The Broadway GID plans to have a $1.1 million budget, of which half will pay for a 24/7 private security force.
Denver City Council has oversight of all special tax districts in the city and votes to approve or reject their budgets.
The formation of the GID began with frustration — organizers said the city has fallen short in responding to various issues in the bustling neighborhood, especially crime and homelessness. GID supporters blamed those issues for businesses leaving the corridor in droves, although others pointed to high real-estate prices and the changing nature of the corridor.
The vote approves a GID for an initial 10-year term, after which voting members of the GID will decide whether to renew it.
