The planned Good Life District (Woodsonia Real Estate Inc., courtesy)
GRAND ISLAND – Grand Island voters have unofficially approved an economic development program for the Good Life District.
The postal ballots had to be submitted by 5 p.m. on August 13.
Unofficial results released by the Hall County Elections Supervisor’s office at 5:41 p.m. on August 13 show that 5,044 people voted for the issue, while 2,415 voted against. A total of 7,488 votes were cast. Voter turnout was 27 percent, said Elections Supervisor Tracy Overstreet. The ballot issue passed with a majority of 2,629 votes.
Overstreet wrote in the August 13 email at 5:41 p.m. that there would be no further counting on August 13. There were fewer than 10 ballots left.
The Hall County Board of Elections is scheduled to meet at 10 a.m. on August 21 to review the election results.
With the creation of the Good Life District, the Nebraska Department of Revenue will reduce the state sales tax in the Good Life District from 5.5 percent to 2.75 percent. The state sales tax reduction will take effect on October 1.
The Good Life District encompasses approximately 875 acres in northwest Grand Island and generally includes the properties bordering Highway 281 from 13th Street to West Capital Avenue and the undeveloped area northeast of North Webb Road and West Capital Avenue extending to and including the existing Veterans Athletic Complex. The Good Life District does not include the property of the former Nebraska Veterans Home.
Grow Grand Island held an informational meeting on the proposal on July 31. Tonja Brown, chair of Grow Grand Island, said she sees the Good Life District as a quality of life issue and a way to attract young families to Grand Island. She said the Good Life District will generate more tourism, which will lead to increased tax revenue.
The Tax Office has informed the City that the net taxable sales in the approved Good Life District in 2023 are $286,737,879. Based on this information, if the Good Life District had existed in 2023, the City would have been able to recoup 2.75 percent, or $7,885,292, from existing retail sales within the recently approved boundaries. A Good Life District exists for 30 years.
According to the website goodlifegi.org, projects planned for the area include a large indoor sports facility, a multi-purpose sports facility with artificial turf, a commercial/business park, single-family homes, multi-family housing and improvements to Eagle Scout Lake.
Woodsonia Real Estate of Elkhorn has applied to the Nebraska Department of Commerce to establish a Good Life District. Woodsonia’s application was officially approved by the Department of Commerce on June 5. In June, the Grand Island City Council approved a special election to establish a local economic development program for a Good Life District.
