onMain receives funding for Phase 1 infrastructure from city of Dayton; finalizes tax sharing plan, agreements

onMain’s innovative redevelopment of the former Montgomery County Fairgrounds site took another important step on Dec. 18 thanks to legislation approved by the Dayton City Commission. The legislation completes important tax agreements with the city of Dayton and Dayton Public Schools, along with a funding commitment of $7.8 million by 2026.

The tax agreements include:

• 15-year Community Reinvestment Area (CRA) ordinance and agreement
• 30-year Tax Increment Financing (TIF) ordinance and agreement
• Development agreement with onMain Inc.

The CRA- and TIF-enabling legislation — coupled with the legislative action Dayton Public Schools approved in April and the planned investment by the onMain partners — will fund construction of Phase 1 infrastructure improvements on the 38-acre site; which include utilities, roads, sidewalks and park spaces. 

“onMain is grateful for the city of Dayton and Dayton City Commission approval of legislation that will continue to build momentum for this transformational project,” said Brian Heitkamp, CEO of onMain. “We look forward to continued collaboration with our community partners to make onMain’s innovative vision a reality.”

The Phase I infrastructure, estimated to cost $23.5 million, will begin construction in spring 2025. After initial infrastructure is in place, buildings within that first phase can begin construction and progress concurrently with the infrastructure. This includes the cornerstone Digital Transformation Center funded partially through the Ohio Innovation Hubs program, as announced in August by Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine and Ohio. Lt. Gov. Lieutenant Governor Jon Husted.

Local stakeholder support continues to play a key role in advancing the initial phases of onMain. Collaboration with community partners includes:

• Montgomery County allocated $1.5 million toward the Phase 1 infrastructure improvements. 
• Other onMain partners invested $14.2 million in Phase 1 Infrastructure. 
• The state of Ohio committed $35 million toward the first building and the future development of the onMain Innovation Hub. 

These are all necessary building blocks to further this once-in-a-generation project. The infrastructure improvements will in turn facilitate potential development of 15 to 20 buildings in the onMain District during the next 20 to 30 years.

Owners of the buildings will make “property tax-like payments” for the parcels on which they build. The three-way arrangement between the city of Dayton, Dayton Public Schools and onMain creates a specific revenue distribution plan that will be received from the building owners’ payments. The revenue received will repay the onMain investors for their investment in infrastructure improvements. The partnership with Dayton Public Schools also includes significant, long-term financial, educational and career benefits to DPS students and faculty provided by the University of Dayton and Premier Health.

At full buildout, the site is projected to include 900,000 square feet of commercial space to support up to 3,000 jobs, 1,600 housing units, complementary retail space, unique community spaces and three parking garages.