The city of St. Paul will dip into a controversial funding source to pay back $900,000 in environmental cleanup at the former site of the Metro Transit “bus barn,” publicly owned land near Snelling and University avenues that may soon be home to a Major League Soccer stadium.

Council members Jane Prince and Rebecca Noecker voted against using “tax increment financing” to fill an unexpected hole in the cleanup budget, but were outnumbered Wednesday in the 5-2 council vote.

The St. Paul Port Authority has assembled more than $3 million in cleanup grants from Ramsey County, the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development and the Metropolitan Council, but only the Ramsey County funds can be used on public land that does not generate property taxes. The “TIF” money will fill in the difference.

Metro Transit has also approved up to $4.5 million for cleanup, but the Met Council has declined to allow any additional environmental grants to be used on public land. Met Council officials noted that their “tax base revitalization” grants are intended to spur taxable private development, and the new stadium will be owned by the city and not pay property taxes.

Council member Chris Tolbert called the stadium a “game-changing” opportunity in the heart of the city.

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Therapy dog-in training stolen in St. Paul found, reunited with owners “It’s amazing to me that the Met Council, which is the polluter, or one of the polluters, won’t fund it,” Tolbert said. “What I do think also is a positive story is that we have a Plan B. … We did contemplate this. Obviously, it wasn’t our first choice.”

The council’s 5-2 vote allows the Port Authority to access $900,000 generated by two tax increment financing districts — one near Dale and University avenues, another off Energy Park Drive. Over the course of 25 years, the districts take money that would otherwise go to the city, county and school district general fund and use it instead to pay off loans for public improvements and environmental cleanup.

“It’s not the way that we should be spending money that could be returned to the tax rolls, or used in an area of great need,” said Prince, speaking in opposition.

“We’re not using it for affordable housing. We’re not using it to address blight. We’re using it for a soccer stadium,” said mayoral candidate Tom Goldstein, addressing the council at a public hearing prior to the vote. “Thirty years of data show stadiums do not spawn development in the neighborhood.”

The districts — which were on schedule to be paid off early — will still sunset by the year 2032. “It was originally set for a 25-year district, and it will still be a 25-year district, or less,” said Jonathan Sage-Martinson, the city’s planning director.