Roseville considers new incentive to spur downtown development

Roseville could offer developers up to $50,000 to help cover city fees for new projects in downtown under an incentive program the City Council will consider Wednesday.

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If adopted, the Downtown Development Impact Fee Credit Program would allow qualifying projects to receive credits toward certain city-controlled development fees.

Gina McColl, Roseville’s economic development analyst, said the goal is to help stimulate investment and redevelopment in downtown Roseville.

“The proposed program would offset city-controlled impact fees for eligible projects, making it easier for businesses to invest,” she said.

The proposal builds on more than a decade of city efforts to encourage redevelopment in Roseville’s original core.

In April 2009, the City Council adopted the Downtown Specific Plan to encourage reinvestment and redevelopment downtown. The plan allowed for up to 900,000 square feet of new ground-floor retail development, 1,020 new residential units and up to 4.4 million square feet of total development.

Since then, the city has invested in downtown infrastructure, upgraded public spaces and expanded public parking and public art. It also has supported the Downtown Roseville Partnership and the Downtown Roseville Facade Rebate Program.

According to city staff, those efforts have supported more than $164 million in improvements since 2009.

The city also has tried to spur redevelopment through the sale of several city-owned downtown properties, including a former Placer County courthouse building at 505 Royer St., the former fire station at 401 Oak St. and the former post office at 320 Vernon St.

The former post office property is now serving as the example for the proposed fee credit program.

In 2019, the City Council approved $275,000 from the Strategic Improvement Fund for the 320 Vernon Street Sale Preparation Project. The money was intended to cover due diligence and hazardous-material remediation costs tied to the proposed reuse of the property.

The property was sold in 2020, with the city agreeing to contribute toward hazardous-material remediation. The original buyer’s project ultimately did not move forward.

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In 2024, Old Town Pizza purchased the property with plans to renovate the existing 25,000-square-foot building into a new restaurant.

To help move the project forward, the City Council approved a $100,000 economic development incentive in November 2024 to fulfill the city’s commitment to remediation costs.

Construction is now underway, and Old Town Pizza is expected to open in fall 2026. The incentive will be issued once construction is completed and the project receives its certificate of occupancy.

City staff said about $126,000 remains from the original $275,000 Strategic Improvement Fund allocation.

The city is now proposing that money as the funding source for a broader downtown development incentive.

The proposed Downtown Development Impact Fee Credit Program would use the remaining money to help offset development costs for future downtown projects.

The program would be modeled after the Commercial Corridors Development Impact Fee Credit Program approved by the City Council in October 2025, but would operate on a smaller scale.

Eligible projects could include residential, mixed-use or destination and pedestrian-oriented commercial developments involving vacant commercial spaces or underused downtown properties.

Projects would need to comply with the Downtown Specific Plan and demonstrate that they would contribute to the area’s economic vitality. That could include creating jobs, generating sales tax revenue, redeveloping an underused property or making a significant investment in an existing site.

Projects that promote mixed-use or multifamily housing also could qualify.

If approved, qualifying projects could receive up to $50,000 in credits toward city-controlled fees. The credit could not exceed 2% of a project’s overall cost, and applicants would need to demonstrate a private investment of at least 25% of the total project cost.

The city expects the proposed funding to support roughly three to four projects.

Unlike an upfront discount on fees, the proposed incentive would be paid after a project is completed, similar to the Old Town Pizza arrangement.

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