Shoppers will have easier access to Wal-Mart and Famous Barr from Stadium Boulevard, but they’re going to have to pay for it at the cash register.
Starting in late November, a new sales tax will be levied on everything sold at businesses in the Biscayne shopping center in order to pay for an entrance to that center from Stadium Boulevard.
This tax is a result of approval of a transportation development district by Boone County Circuit Court on Monday. The special tax district was requested by Stan Kroenke, the principal investor in TKG Biscayne, which owns the shopping center.
The plan gained momentum Thursday as city representatives met with members of TKG Biscayneto appoint a five-member board to oversee taxation.
The tax will fund a $1.73 million road project, scheduled for completion in November, to create a right-turn-in, right-turn-out entrance to the shopping center. It will also expand the west side of Stadium Boulevard to allow for better traffic flow.
The new tax, which is expected to be a half-cent on the dollar, will be levied at Wal-Mart, Famous Barr, McDonald’s and any other businesses that go into the Biscayne shopping center, said Craig Van Matre, Kroenke’s attorney.
Van Matre said the transportation development district will dissolve either when the bonds are fully paid or if the city creates its own district.
The city currently has plans to create such a district in that area to further solve traffic problems on Stadium Boulevard, Van Matre said. “So in all likelihood, this TDD will only last a year,” he said.
The board members chosen by TKG Biscayne are R. Otto Maly, Hiram G. Watson, John R. Hancock, Jack L. Maher and Marc Kirchhoff.