Dublin Council takes up 2027 budget, school TIF payments Nov. 16

Dublin City Council will introduce the city's 2027 spending plan and vote on Bridge Street District tax payments to local schools at its Nov. 16 meeting.

The regular meeting begins at 6:30 p.m. at 5555 Perimeter Drive, according to the council's meeting agenda. A work session on hotel/motel tax agreements starts an hour earlier, at 5:30 p.m.

Here is what residents should watch for.

2027 budget appropriations

Ordinance 63-26 gets its first reading Nov. 16. The measure would establish appropriations based on the 2027 annual operating and capital budgets for the fiscal year ending Dec. 31, 2027. A first reading introduces the legislation; a public hearing and vote would follow at a later meeting.

Bridge Street TIF school payments

Ordinance 60-26, listed for a second reading and public hearing, would authorize compensation payments to Dublin City Schools and Tolles Career & Technical Center from the Bridge Street District tax increment financing (TIF) fund. The ordinance declares improvements to certain parcels in the Bridge Street District a public purpose and exempt from taxation. It provides for the collection of service payments and specifies how those payments may be spent. The specific dollar amounts of the compensation payments are not listed in the agenda.

West Innovation District zoning changes

Ordinance 66-26 proposes amendments to zoning code sections 153.002 and 153.037 through 153.042 for the ID-2 and ID-3 districts, along with changes to the West Innovation District (WID) Screening and Setback Design Manual.

The amendments follow a unanimous 7-0 Council motion on July 1 directing staff to review the ID-2 and ID-3 portions of the code. That directive came the same night Council voted 6-1 to approve Ordinance 33-26, which removed data centers as a permitted use throughout the WID and created the new ID-6 Research Transition District, according to council records. Council also voted 5-2 that night to rezone roughly 370 acres from rural to the ID-6, ID-2 and ID-3 districts.

The ID-2 and ID-3 districts currently allow data centers as conditional uses, requiring additional public review by the Planning and Zoning Commission, according to the city's WID rezoning FAQ. Properties in those districts must provide a 150-foot building and pavement setback from adjacent residential zones, with a 200-foot setback along Cosgray Road. The specific changes proposed under Ordinance 66-26 are not detailed in the agenda.

Infrastructure bids and easements

Council will vote on two capital project bids. Resolution 52-26 would accept the lowest and best bid for the Water Booster Station Improvements Project. Resolution 53-26 would do the same for the Deer Run Sanitary Sewershed Infiltration/Inflow Mitigation Pilot Project. Bid amounts are not listed in the agenda.

Two Riverside Drive items also appear. Ordinance 62-26 would authorize the city manager to acquire a 0.045-acre permanent utility easement from the property at 7960 Riverside Drive, owned by Matthew J. Cafarelli and Alicia A. Cafarelli, for the Riverside Drive Shared Use Path, water main and sanitary sewer extensions. Ordinance 64-26 would appropriate a 0.046-acre easement from 7700 Riverside Drive, owned by Jared M. Boling and Nicole L. Boling, for the same project.

Hotel/motel tax work session

Before the regular meeting, Council will discuss distribution agreements with Visit Dublin Ohio, Dublin Historical Society and Dublin Arts Council during the 5:30 p.m. work session.

The city's Finance Committee has been developing those agreements since February. At its May 12 meeting, staff presented draft three-year agreements for Visit Dublin Ohio and the Dublin Historical Society. Funding for Visit Dublin Ohio would be set as a fixed dollar amount based on 2026 actual revenue with a 3% annual increase, according to the Finance Committee minutes. The Historical Society's amount would start at roughly $36,000, matching its prior-year grant, plus a 3% increase.

The Dublin Arts Council agreement is tied to a building lease. Staff recommended a new appraisal and lease rate analysis before finalizing terms.

Hotel/motel tax revenue totaled $3.7 million in 2024 and accounts for about 5% of the city's operating resources, according to the February Finance Committee minutes.

The regular meeting agenda also includes citizen comments and an executive session on a potential land purchase. Residents can attend in person at 5555 Perimeter Drive. Speakers are limited to three minutes per issue.