Development Finance Toolbox
- OnlineDecember 8 - 10, 2026
December 8-10, 2026 | 10:00am | Online | Registration Fee: $370
A survey of local government financing tools for community and economic development: How do local governments use public-private partnerships for development? What finance tools are available to local governments to revitalize Main Street? North Carolina communities can select from a wide array of financing tools in their efforts to attract and grow businesses, improve real estate, and build community assets. In order to select the right approach for your development project, it helps to understand the options.
Participants in this course will learn the basics of development finance tools used by North Carolina local governments to achieve their community and economic development goals.
Program Topics:
- Federal tax credit financing
- Public-private partnerships for redevelopment
- Local government capital financing
- Tax increment financing (TIF) and synthetic TIF
- Business improvement districts
- Attracting private investment to Main Street
- Grant identification and management
- Fundamentals of developer real estate financing
Attendees: Elected officials; city and county managers, assistant managers, and clerks; and community and economic development professionals seeking a greater understanding of the development finance options available to North Carolina local governments.
AGENDA
The 2026 Agenda still to be announced but you can view the 2025 Agenda here for reference.
CERTIFICATION AND CONTINUING EDUCATION INFORMATION
Continuing Education Credits: This course includes continuing education credits for 10 hours CLE for attorneys, and 12.5 CM (including 1Legal CM) for Planners.
LELA Level: This is a 301 Level course in the Local Elected Leaders Academy. Elected officials who attend this class will earn 6 credits.
Any credits earned from this program are not applicable toward an academic degree at UNC.
For more information on certification or continuing education credits, please see the Continuing Professional Education page.
REQUIREMENTS
Attendance: Full participation is required to receive credit. There is some pre-work required for attendees. Please contact Registration & Client Services if you cannot attend to cancel your registration. Our cancellation policy is linked below.
Pre-requisites: There are no pre-requisites to register for this program.
Additional information
SCHOLARSHIP and DISCOUNT INFORMATION
The School of Government is grateful to offer a number of scholarship and discount opportunities for public officials who wish to participate in our continuing education programs. Scholarships and discounts are available both internally through the School and through the generous support of partnering organizations.
Learn more about the range of these opportunities on our Scholarship and Discount Opportunities page.
MATERIALS
Program materials will be available in CANVAS as they are received from instructors. Instructions for accessing or creating a log-in to CANVAS can be found on the program materials site.
CANCELLATION POLICY: (bold, capital)
Course participants who cancel their registration more than 7 calendar days before the course start date will receive a full refund. Otherwise, participants will receive a transferrable credit to be used within 12 months. More information can be found in the full cancellation and refund policy.
- OnlineDecember 8 - 10, 2026View Cancellation PolicyCourse participants who cancel their registration on or before November 30, 2026 will receive a full refund. No refund will be made for cancellations on or after December 01, 2026, but you will receive a transferrable credit to be used within 12 months. Click here to view the School’s full cancellation and refund policy.$370.00Registration and payment for this course grants access for a single attendee. In order to register a group of attendees, please register each person individually. If you have questions, please contact our registration office at registration@sog.unc.edu or 919.966.4414.
Program materials will be available in CANVAS 1-2 weeks prior to class. Instructions for accessing or creating a log-in to CANVAS can be found here: CANVAS Instructions.
Information to help you prepare:
- Zoom: Registrants will receive a link to join the Zoom sessions via email. You must join from a device equipped with a camera and microphone. Phone attandence is not permitted.
- Agenda: 2025 agenda for plannning purposes HERE . The 2026 agenda will be posted this summer.
- Supplemental Resources: An excellent resource is the School of Government text, Introduction to Local Government Finance. Reading the following chapters authored by Kara Millonzi, Connor Crews, Crista Cuccaro, and Tyler Mulligan will be helpful to attendees but is not required: Chapters 1, 4, 7, 11, and 15. The 5th edition of the book was released in 2023 and can be purchased here: Introduction to Local Government Finance, 5th Ed.
Susan Hutchinson
