This story was written by Scott Buttram, publisher of the Trussville Tribune.
TRUSSVILLE, Ala. (TRIBUNE) — When the Trussville City Council approved a development agreement on Thursday with Blackwater Real Estate (BRE Main Street) for a proposed grocery store, the incentive package represented a departure from previous incentive agreements. For the first time, a 1-cent sales tax allocated for Trussville schools was included in the incentive package.
The city collects 4-cents on every dollar spent on sales in Trussville, but one of those pennies has been allocated to schools for over two decades. All previous incentive agreements for new businesses, including a 2015 incentive agreement with Blackwater Real Estate for the Homestead Village shopping center, have set aside the 1-cent for schools, considering only the portion of sales tax for incentive tax rebates for businesses or developers. Last week, the City Council unanimously approved an agreement with BRE Main Street which included the full 4 percent in local sales tax…