This means the tax revenue the project generates will be returned to the project to finance the public portion of it, which includes the parking structure and the public theater, said Tim Dempsey, East Lansing’s community and economic development administrator.

All of the residential units, and the majority of the commercial units, will be paid for privately — not through the city, he said.

“I didn’t really see anything on the face of it … that I found objectionable,” Councilmember Roger Peters said.

There are two forms of tax increment financing, through the Brownfield Redevelopment Authority and the DDA.

The amount of tax increment funds going to the Brownfield and DDA plans will be determined by the types of projects the money needs to be spent on, Dempsey said.

The public theater will be paid for with DDA funds, while the Brownfield funds will cover cleanup activities and substantial infrastructure work, he said.

“We expect a majority of public funds will come out of the Brownfield side; the DDA will be a lesser amount,” Dempsey said.

Only one resident, who was in favor of the amendment to the DDA plan, spoke during the public hearing portion of the meeting.

“I think many of the major issues dealing with the financing have been discussed at previous meetings,” Councilmember Nathan Triplett said. “There was already a presentation on (tax increment) financing Tim Dempsey gave three times (at previous meetings).”

While the method of financing has been determined, there are still quite a few steps that need to be taken before the project can begin development, such as approving the issuance of bonds, Triplett said.

Although the council approved the project’s development agreement July 15, there are still a few modifications that will need to come before council, city manager Ted Staton said.

“They may all be done in one addendum, but there are two issues — one relates to the complicated financial structure, and one relates to the property transfers,” he said. “Because roadways are shifting five feet this way, and 10 feet that way, there will be numerous complicated transfers of property.”

The Historic District Commission also needs to vote to approve the project, Staton said.

“The reason is that there are four structures in the historic district that are part of the project footprint that need to be demolished,” he said.

“And the Historic District Commission needs to approve the demolition of anything in the district.”

The commission will probably vote on the project sometime in September, Staton said. City council will not meet again until its work session Aug. 26.