City of Joplin officials are celebrating the completion of a sizeable, successful financing project as the second and final tax tool for 1717 Marketplace — known as a Transportation Development District (TDD) tax — ended on September 30.
The closing of the TDD tax marks an early end to the total financing plan that helped make the expanded retail area on Range Line Road possible.
Twenty years ago, this portion of Range Line (where K-Mart and Sands Inn Motel had once operated) was considered “blighted” due to the vacant businesses that were generating little to no tax revenue. The City, the development partners, and property owners within the district used economic development incentives to redevelop the entire retail area, transforming it into a thriving shopping and restaurant district.
The financing tools that made 1717 Marketplace possible were a Tax Increment Financing (TIF) agreement as well as the TDD. The TIF redirected some of the property and sales tax revenue generated by the redeveloped retail district to pay for public infrastructure improvements. The TIF came to a successful close on June 1, 2026. The TDD assessed an additional 1/8th cent tax on sales at businesses within the district to reimburse expenses related to the transportation infrastructure required by the redevelopment.
While the TIF worked to fully reimburse the extraordinary costs of infrastructure improvements to most of that area (including street improvements, sidewalks, streetlights, stormwater systems, etc.), the TDD is the funding mechanism that made improvements at the intersection of 17th and Range Line possible and created access to Macadoodles, Shell, Wendy’s, Academy Sports, and Wal-Mart.
“Joplin has managed these development opportunities utilizing tax financing tools very well over the past 20 years,” said Joplin City Manager Nick Edwards. “Many factors made this project successful, but the credit is due to local shoppers who supported these new businesses and welcomed them to the community.”
The Impact of the TIF
TIF is a funding mechanism that helps pay for the very expensive infrastructure improvements which might be required to make a proposed development project possible. To do that, a TIF first locks in the base tax value to ensure any current recipients of the tax revenue (like the school district) continue receiving that annual revenue from the properties included in the TIF district
Then, development begins. As soon as the new businesses are generating additional sales and property tax revenue, the increment above the base amount of tax revenue is captured to reimburse the developer for TIF-eligible expenses, such as street, sidewalk and stormwater infrastructure work that was completed as part of the development. Once those costs are reimbursed, the TIF is closed. Successful TIF Districts pay off and are closed ahead of the 23-year maximum allowable time period, like 1717 MarketPlace, which ran about 21 years. A thriving development generating more sales and property taxes now exists where there was once blight.
In July, with the cost of infrastructure improvements fully reimbursed through the TIF, the district began passing along 100% of the increased tax revenue generated within the properties to local taxing entities, including the City, County and Joplin Schools. This was the second TIF used by the City of Joplin. The first TIF began in 2004 for the development of the Northpark Crossing shopping center. That TIF was successfully completed and closed in 2024.
“There is a misperception that the developer gets a break, but without the TIF, the project is not feasible,” said Troy Bolander, the City’s director of Planning, Zoning and Neighborhood Services. “The TIF makes projects and increased tax revenue possible when it would otherwise be impossible, helping our City be a thriving and vibrant community.”
The Boost of TDD
The tax collected through the TDD brought an additional $3 million to the 1717 Marketplace project. While it could have gone for as long as 30 years, the TDD reimbursed those costs in just 21 years. This was Joplin’s first time utilizing a TDD.
“Joplin continues to improve and expand its offerings while using proven economic development tools to support growth,” Edwards said. “There has never been a better time to live and shop in Joplin, and I am proud of the residents, business owners and City staff whose efforts keep our community moving forward.”
Reference:
Cassie Faucett, Public Information Officer
City of Joplin
417.624.0820, ext. 1204
CFaucett@joplinmo.org
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