Coltsville Reloaded

"Renovation of the Colt complex took more than a decade to get off the ground. The environmental cleanup of the old industrial site, and the demands of historic preservation, promised to make it an expensive, lengthy project. So when Homes For America Holdings…agreed to buy the complex in summer 2002, city development officials embraced them with open arms..."

"In December the city approved a tax-increment financing (TIF) plan, selling a bond -- that is, borrowing money -- and giving it to Colt Gateway in the expectation that the complex will pay higher taxes in the future. The company will get $7.4 million, about 6.8 percent of its total budget for the redevelopment plan. The deal has the effect of giving the complex an advance payment on a big, multi-year tax break. Hartford's policy governing this first-of-its-kind deal requires that the project not be able to go forward without the gift from the city."