Quote Originally Posted by riflesforwatie View Post
…Anyway, if we thought about development in a way that didn't always prioritize/encourage sprawl, I think the necessity of TIFs would be far less than it is today, because Downtown's other natural advantages (network effects, central location, public investment, and more) would quickly become apparent.
I agree wholeheartedly with this. If we would ever properly address land use policy to discourage (or at the very least to disincentivize) development at the fringe, TIF would be less necessary. If we’d done it years ago it DEFINITELY wouldn’t be necessary.

Instead, we sold our collective souls to auto-centric, cheap and tacky sprawl in a way that all but guaranteed we’d eventually have to incentivize urban development if we wanted to recreate and maintain a vibrant urban core, which any properly-functioning metropolitan area demands.