City Council: We Don't Need the Money

The City Council rejected a $21M grants proposal by the Allen Group for road and infrastructure improvements in Wilmer for their Dallas Logistics Hub project. A number of new roads in the Wilmer area, as well as major improvements to Pleasant Run Road were covered by the proposal. The Allen Group has offered to prepare grant requests totaling $21M to the regional authority for the improvements. Under the proposal, the Allen Group would pay in advance for the 20% ($4M) required matching funds to receive the grants. These matching funds would be recovered by the Allen Group under a tax abatement agreement similar to other abatement programs the city has offered to major developers in the area.
The council discussion centered on the repayment of the $4M and the misconception that this would be a future liability which "we don't have the money for".