The City of Springfield uses a portion of its CDBG funds to support the expansion of economic opportunities for low income persons through financial assistance to businesses looking to expand within the City. The City provides low interest loans to for profit businesses opening or expanding their operations. The purpose of these loans are to create new job opportunities, primarily for persons earning less than 80% of the area median income.

For more information about our CDBP Loan program, please contact Craig Jeffers in our Office of Planning and Economic Development below.

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• Sales Tax Deduction - All building materials purchased and physically incorporated into the new construction or rehabilitation of a building located within the City’s Enterprise Zone are exempt from all sales tax provided that a building permit is required.
• Property Tax Abatement - New construction or rehabilitation of property located in the Enterprise Zone may qualify for a property tax abatement of the City portion of real estate taxes based on the increase in assessed value of property due to the improvements. Property located in a Tax Increment Finance District is not eligible for property tax abatement according to state guidelines.
  • General Inducement Criteria- All projects that result in over $25,000 in increased assessed value and fall within one of the following categories:
    1. Commercial and Industrial projects that do not meet the Targeted Inducement Criteria
    2. Single Family and Multi-Family residential projects - The General Inducement for these projects are abated on a sliding scale of 100% the first year, 75% the second year and 50% the third year
  • Area Impact Inducement Criteria: All projects that result in over $25,000 in increased assessed value and are located within one of the City’s Community Development Block Grant Treatment Areas and Enterprise Zone will receive a 100% abatement on the City portion of the increase valuation dependent upon the timing of the final assessment but no later than December 31, 2030 or until termination of the zone.
  • Targeted Inducement Criteria- The targeted inducement for specified projects will be 100% abatement of the city’s portion of the taxes dependent upon the timing of the final assessment but no later than December 31, 2030 or until termination of the zone. Targeted Inducement Eligible Criteria:
    1. Industrial or Manufacturing Projects
    2. Large Business Projects
    3. Healthcare
    4. Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services
• Machinery & Equipment Tax Exemption - The “Illinois Retailer Occupational Tax Act” authorizes eligible businesses a state sales tax exemption for tangible personal property to be used or consumed within an enterprise zone in the process of manufacturing or assembly of tangible personal property for wholesale or retail sale or lease.
• Utility Tax Exemption - A state utility tax exemption on gas, electricity and the Illinois Commerce Commission’s administrative charge is available to businesses in enterprise zones. Eligible businesses must make an investment of at least $5 million and create a minimum of 200 full time equivalent jobs in Illinois, or an investment of $20 million that retains at least 1,000 full time equivalent jobs in Illinois.
• Investment Tax Credit - A state investment tax credit of 0.5 percent is allowed a taxpayer who invests in qualified property in an enterprise zone.

For more information about our Enterprise Zone Incentives, please contact Teri Whitfield in our Office of Planning and Economic Development below.
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For a map of the Springfield-Sangamon County Enterprise Zone, click on the box below.
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Tax Increment Financing is a tool to use future gains in taxes to finance redevelopment and community improvement projects. The City of Springfield has designated eight defined areas of the city as Tax Increment Financing Districts. The TIF districts were established in order to attract private developers to blighted areas that were in need of redevelopment. TIF funds support many improvements, including roadway access, demolition of old buildings, streetscape, site preparation, public utilities, lighting, infrastructure rebates, and building rehabilitation.

The following local areas have been designated by the City Council to be TIF Districts and have benefited in varying degrees, from roadway access, demolition of old buildings, streetscape, site preparation, public utilities, lighting, infrastructure rebates, and building rehabilitation:

For more information about our Tax Increment Finance Incentives, please contact Abby Powell in our Office of Planning and Economic Development below.
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The Office of Planning and Economic Development houses a microlending program for small businesses. The program debuted in September 2015 with $1.7 million in start-up capital from local financial institutions and Community Development Block Grant Funds. The fund is facilitated by Justine Petersen, the largest SBA micro lender in the U.S., provides comprehensive micro-enterprise lending and training to small and start-up businesses including one-on-one counseling and technical assistance; credit building strategies; FDIC Money Smart Curriculum; a business plan questionnaire to assist clients through the business planning process; micro-loan origination; and post-loan technical assistance for those that struggle to meet their business plan benchmarks and for those that are expanding their businesses.

For more information about our Microloan Program, please contact Lashonda Fitch in our Office of Planning and Economic Development at LFitch@justinepetersen.org.

For more information about all of Justine Petersen’s services, please visit www.justinepetersen.org

City Water Light and Power (CWLP), Springfield's city-owned electric and water utility, is known as a low cost energy provider with a record of reliability. Its reliability is among the best in the nation. Outages and interruptions in Springfield occur at half the rate of the national average, according to Restructuring Magazine.

The city owns its electric generation and water treatment plants and produces enough of both commodities to meet all the needs of the community - with room to grow. At the same time, CWLP's exceptional service is enhanced by its low cost. Residential customers enjoy among the lowest electric rates in the nation and both residential and commercial customers pay among the lowest water rates in Illinois.

CWLP offers several programs to assist with the expansion and relocation of companies and to help businesses become more energy and water-efficient:

• Heat Pump Rebate
• Water Heater Rebate
• Solar Rewards Rebate
• Renewable Choice Program
• Energy Audits and Technical Assistance
• Water Conservation

CWLP also maintains a network of more than 100 miles of installed fiber optic cable. Commercial customers can tap into the bandwidth, which provides communication speeds in excess of one billion bits per second, and that offers such capabilities as high-speed data transfer, e-commerce, distance learning, interactive education, tele-medicine, security, and high speed Internet connections.

For more information about CWLP, please visit their website below.
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The Springfield Historic Sites Commission seeks to assist in preserving the numerous landmarked buildings and historic properties that are important links to our past and increase awareness of the need for historic preservation throughout the city.

Upon recommendation of the Historic Sites Commission and approval by the City Council, an owner of a property designated as an historic landmark or lying within a designated historic district may be eligible for additional assistance such as property tax rebates under §101.50 of the City Code.

Property owners may also be eligible to receive State and Federal incentives for rehabilitation of historic properties including property tax freezes and preservation tax credits. For more information on these programs, visit the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency’s Financial Incentives website below.
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See the Rehab Assistance Brochure for more information on available incentives and visit the Springfield Historic Sites Commission’s website below to learn more about the effort to preserve Springfield’s architectural treasures.
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For more information on the Springfield Historic Sites Commission, please contact Lauren Gibson at 217-789-2377 or email below.
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