Development Finance Toolbox
Due to continuing concerns regarding COVID-19, the 2020 offering of Development Finance Toolbox will be offered ONLINE via Zoom. Please see the Agenda under Materials for more information.
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. The registration fee includes a workshop on Day 1 designed to teach you basics of calculating an estimated return on investment and different ways of thinking about debt and equity, so you can heighten your intuition about worthwhile projects.
Program Topics:
Federal financing programs and tax credit financing
- Public-Private Partnerships for Redevelopment
Opportunity Zones and the Local Government Role
Local government capital financing
Tax increment financing (TIF) and synthetic TIF
Business improvement districts
Attracting private investment to Main Street
Workshop: Fundamentals of Developer Real Estate Financing
*The workshop (held on the first day of the course) is included in the registration fee. The workshop content is designed specifically to help you learn basics of calculating an estimated return on investment and different ways of thinking about debt and equity, so you can heighten your intuition about worthwhile projects. The workshop lays the foundation for the rest of the course, so attendance is strongly encouraged.
The North Carolina Association of County Commissioners provides cost offsets for county elected officials to attend LELA courses. For information on this discount click here.
Local Government Federal Credit Union offers scholarships to local government employees to apply toward tuition for conferences, classes, and seminars offered by the School of Government. There are four deadlines to submit applications:
- March 1 (for courses starting between April 1 and June 30)
- June 1 (for courses starting between July 1 and September 30)
- September 1 (for courses starting between October 1 and December 31)
- December 1 (for courses starting between January 1 and March 31)
Additional information
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.
This course is applicable for a total of 14.5 AICP Credit Hours
| Total | 6.00 hrs |
| CEU | 14.50 hrs |
An excellent resource is the School of Government text, Introduction to Local Government Finance. Reading the following chapters authored by Norma Houston, Kara Millonzi, and Tyler Mulligan will be helpful to attendees but is not required: Chapters 1, 4, 7, 10, and 14. The 4th edition of the book was released in August 2018 and can be purchased here: Introduction to Local Government Finance, 4th Ed.
This multi-authored book provides an overview of the financial management laws and practices applicable to local governments and public authorities in North Carolina.
2020 Agenda (ONLINE)
