Wood River City Council Meeting
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WOOD RIVER – Changes to redevelopment agreements for three Wood River properties face scrutiny from City Councilman Bill Dettmers, who claims city officials have failed to enforce certain guidelines.
At Monday’s City Council meeting, Dettmers vocally opposed a series of amendments to TIF agreements for three properties, claiming the amendments would eliminate protections defending the city against waste, fraud, and abuse.
City Manager Steve Palen said the city was simply amending each of its TIF agreements to be consistent with each other. Councilman Jeremy Plank has previously voiced support for simplifying the city’s TIF agreements to encourage developers to invest in Wood River.
Of concern for Dettmers were three agreements for redevelopment using Tax Increment Financing (TIF). The properties in question include 1 E. Ferguson Ave., 10 W. Ferguson Ave., and 62 E. Ferguson Ave.
For 1 E. Ferguson Ave., Dettmers claimed an amendment was made to the TIF agreement and signed off by City Manager Steve Palen, rather than Mayor Tom Stalcup, as required under an ordinance passed last fall. He further alleged the mayor was notified of the change and did nothing to stop it from going forward.
Dettmers said the agreement for 10 W. Ferguson had problems based on his conversations with the city attorney.
He accused Palen of costing the city in extra expenses to have the documents redone and claimed city officials – except fellow Councilman David Ayres – are complicit in Palen’s alleged failure to fulfill his job requirements.
For the 62 E. Ferguson Ave. agreement, Dettmers said the property owner has failed to meet certain contractual agreements despite the city agreeing to reimburse them for up to $250,000. He reiterated his concern that removing certain provisions from the agreement would open the door to TIF dollars being wasted and more.
All three agreements were passed on votes of 3-2; in each case, Dettmers and Ayres voted against the agreements, while Stalcup, Plank, and Councilman Scott Tweedy voted in favor.
A full recording of the March 17, 2025 Wood River City Council meeting is available at the top of this story or on Riverbender.com/video.
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