58-505. Redevelopment project; application; hearing; approval.

(1) A company may file a project application with the city or joint entity that filed the area application for the designated blighted and substandard area to undertake and complete a redevelopment project in such designated area and to obtain tax increment financing under the Nebraska Redevelopment Act for such project. Such application may be filed either before or after approval by the board of the area application for designation of such area. The company shall, at the time of filing the project application with the city or joint entity, also file a copy of such project application with the governing body of each of the public bodies whose area of operation or the area within three miles thereof includes in whole or in part the project area. Not later than five calendar days before approving or disapproving the project application, the city or joint entity shall, by United States mail, postage prepaid, mail to the owners of real property described in the project application as being within the project area a written notice stating that the property owned by the person or persons is proposed to be included in the project area of a project under the Nebraska Redevelopment Act, that a project application has been filed with the city or joint entity, the date, time, and location of the public hearing, and where additional information may be obtained. The notice shall be sent to the owner or owners of the real property as their names appear and at the address indicated in the records of the county assessor for property tax purposes on the business day immediately prior to the date of the mailing. The city or joint entity may, but shall not be required to, send the notice by certified or registered United States mail. Substantial compliance with this notice requirement shall be deemed sufficient for all purposes of the act.

(2) Such city or joint entity shall no sooner than twenty days after the filing of such project application, and no later than sixty days after the filing of such project application, either approve or disapprove such project application. Such project application shall not be approved if (a) the governing body of a county whose area of operation includes in whole or part the project area, (b) the governing body of a city whose area of operation and the area within three miles thereof includes in whole or part the project area, or (c) any electric utility serving the project area shall, within fifteen days after receipt of the project application, file with such city or joint entity a written objection to approval of the project application signed by the head of such governing body. The city, county, or electric utility may withdraw the objection within thirty days after it is filed.

(3) The project application shall contain:

(a) The exact name of the company and any related companies which will be included in the redevelopment project;

(b) A statement describing in detail the nature of the company's business, including the products sold and respective markets;

(c) A legal description of the project area;

(d) A detailed narrative that describes the proposed redevelopment project, including an allocation of the proposed expenditures for site acquisition, site preparation, and buildings and improvement construction, equipment, and other personal property purchases and leases;

(e) A request that the proposed redevelopment project be considered for approval by such city or joint entity;

(f) A copy of the company's internal authorization for the redevelopment project; and

(g) The number of base-year employees and the expected number of new employees, including the expected timing of the hiring of the new employees, the anticipated timing and anticipated amounts of new investment in buildings, equipment, and other real property and personal property and the average salaries expected by category for the new employees to be employed at the redevelopment project.

(4) The city or joint entity shall determine whether to approve the company's project application based on its determination as to whether the redevelopment project will sufficiently help enable the state and local communities to accomplish the legislative purposes of the act. The city or joint entity shall be governed by and shall take into consideration all of the following factors in making such determination:

(a) The timing, number, wage levels, employee benefit package, and types of new jobs to be created by the redevelopment project;

(b) The type of industry in which the company and the project would be engaged;

(c) The timing, amount of, and types of investment in qualified property to be made at the project;

(d) Whether the city or joint entity believes the redevelopment project would occur in this state regardless of whether the application was approved; and

(e) Whether the benefits allowed by the act for the redevelopment project, when compared to the local tax revenue and fees generated by the redevelopment project investment and employment, both on a direct and indirect multiplier basis, provide an adequate net benefit to the public bodies affected by such redevelopment project.

(5) A project shall be considered eligible under the act and may be approved by the city or joint entity only if the application defines a redevelopment project (a) which is consistent with the legislative purposes contained in section 58-502 in one or more qualified business activities within the project area and (b) that will result at the project area in the investment in qualified property of at least fifty million dollars and the hiring of a number of new employees of at least five hundred, and when such new investment and employment will occur within five years, meaning by the end of the fourth year after the end of the year the application was filed, and such new investment and employment will be maintained for the entire redevelopment period. These thresholds shall constitute the required levels of employment and investment for purposes of the act.

(6) If the redevelopment project application is approved by the city or joint entity, the city or joint entity shall as the contracting public body enter into a written project agreement with the company. The project agreement shall be executed on behalf of the contracting public body by the person normally or specifically authorized to execute agreements on behalf of such entity. In the project agreement, the company shall agree to complete the redevelopment project and the contracting public body shall designate the approved plans of the company as a redevelopment project and, in consideration of the company's agreement, agree to allow the provisions relating to indebtedness by a city or cities and the payment of such indebtedness through tax increment financing as provided for in the act. The contracting public body shall not incur indebtedness under the agreement except for the purposes of land acquisition, site preparation, extension of public services, and improvements to the site, including buildings for other than residential use. The project agreement shall contain other terms as the city or joint entity and the company determine are appropriate or necessary to protect the affected public bodies and to carry out the legislative purposes of the act and may contain terms for a recapture or other remedy if the company fails to attain the required levels of employment and investment within the time period contained in the act or fails to maintain such levels for the redevelopment period. The project application shall be considered as part of the project agreement.

(7) If the city or joint entity approves such project application, then the project area is, for purposes of Article VIII, section 12, of the Constitution of Nebraska, as applied in the act, considered as determined by law to be substandard and blighted property in a redevelopment project.

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