Should it be called the Lake Highlands Town Center or the Lake Highlands Mixed-Use District (which, as Back Talk blog readers have already pointed out, would be the Lake Highlands MUD)? A consultant hired by the City of Dallas has proposed the latter, and we discuss that critique along with others on today’s podcast.

Another consultant critique was that the Town Center streets should be ripped up and redesigned. The money spent on those streets is eligible for Tax Increment Financing (TIF) reimbursement, and last week the Skillman Corridor TIF Board approved a change that would make Lake Highlands Town Center developer Prescott Realty eligible for $40 million in tax dollar reimbursements, $17 million more than the original $23 million approved. TIF dollars are usually reimbursed over time as a development increases a property’s value and, thereby, its city tax revenues. However, in the case of the Town Center, the city will reimburse Prescott for $1.37 million this month.

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Did knocking down the former apartments on the current Town Center land increase the property values enough to produce that kind of reimbursement? And will the $17 million increase in the TIF reimbursement allowance cover a street redo? These are just a couple of the questions we discuss.

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Do you have feedback for the Lake Highlands podcast? Email us at lakehighlandspodcast@advocatemag.com.