The Value of Transformation: Downtown Fargo Redevelopment and Walking Tour

Fargo Redevelopment Programs: Transformation, TIF & Valuation Impacts

The City of Fargo has encouraged the redevelopment of blighted areas of the City. The primary tool has been Tax Increment Financing. Projects have included:

• Removal of blighted older houses adjacent to the NDSU campus. New apartment/commercial buildings have been constructed in their place.

• Redevelopment of industrial sites that are vacant or have very low value buildings. New development has included modern high-quality warehouses and commercial buildings.

• Redevelopment of decade-old obsolete strip commercial sites. A big box site with acres of parking is redeveloped into a site with new housing and commercial buildings. A strip center with adjacent older houses is now a new building with commercial on the main floor and apartments on the upper floors.

• Parking garages in downtown have facilitated new housing in the core of the City and provided parking for downtown workers and patrons of downtown businesses. 

Redevelopment benefits the City in many ways. Removing blighted and dangerous buildings improves the appearance of an area, removes a threat to public safely, increases property values and makes use of existing infrastructure. This session will illustrate several redevelopment examples that have been successful projects in Fargo.