CARA grant pool
$545,000
Authorized in January and fully allocated across April 22 and May 27 votes
ARA / CARA Watch
Albany's urban-renewal money trail, packet by packet.
This source-backed dashboard organizes the Albany Revitalization Agency packets that led from CARA closeout strategy to the 2026 grant awards and the latest 300 W. First Avenue deadline extension.
Eligible demand
$1.47M
Twelve complete applications requested $1,466,216.21
Award coverage
37%
Available pool covered about 37.2% of complete requests
300 W. First
Nov. 30
Development-agreement milestone extended to November 30, 2026
Packet index
Five packets explain the 2026 decision chain.
June 11, 2025
Budget base
2025-2027 ARA budget adoption
The budget hearing packet anchors the biennium that staff later used for CARA closeout, grant spending, and remaining urban-renewal work.
November 19, 2025
Closeout strategy
CARA financial update and spending discussion
The packet brought the agency back to maximum indebtedness, remaining spending authority, loan repayments, tax-increment closeout, and whether to reopen grant-style spending.
January 28, 2026
Program set
CARA grant program authorized
The agency set the $545,000 program, required a 25% grantee match, confirmed reimbursement-style awards, and kept future phases of ongoing projects eligible.
April 22, 2026
Applications
Grant application packet and first award
The 306-page packet carried the complete application set. The agency heard applicants and made the first partial award to the Oregon Electric Railway Building / Sybaris.
May 27, 2026
Awards and property
Final grant awards and 300 W. First memo
The 309-page packet carried the April 22 draft minutes, grant award continuation materials, executive-session notice, and the 300 W. First Avenue development discussion memo.
BN 2025–2027 adopted budget
How the district is spending its final biennium.
The ARA board adopted a $29.3M biennial budget, with 65% held in reserves pending a fall 2025 decision on maximum indebtedness. The Water Avenue Project represents the district's capstone capital investment.
BN 2025–27 revenues
$29.3M
Total biennial revenues: $13.9M tax increment + $15M beginning balance + $412K other
Debt service
$4.67M
Banner Bank and Oregon IFA loan obligations across the biennium
Capital outlay
$4.5M
Final Water Avenue and waterfront project phases
Reserves held
65.5%
$19.19M held pending the ARA Board's fall 2025 maximum-indebtedness decision
Max. indebtedness margin
$3.1M
Potential remaining capacity identified by staff for final CARA investments
Sunset dividend
$1.4–1.74M
Estimated annual property tax capacity returned to the City General Fund on CARA closure (~25% City share; range = FY24 audited run rate vs. budget assumption)
Money in vs. money out, per audited year ($M)
FY22
Taxes collected
$4.5M
Spent on projects
$1.1M
Loan payments
$1.2M
FY23
Taxes collected
$5.1M
Spent on projects
$2.7M
Loan payments
$1.6M
FY24
Taxes collected
$5.6M
Spent on projects
$12.1M
Loan payments
$2.3M
The district collects about $5.5M/year in redirected property taxes and owes about $2.3M/year on its loans. FY24's $12.1M project spend — the waterfront construction push — is why the agency's savings dropped by nearly $9M in a single year.
The agency's savings account, June 30 each year ($M)
$27.2MFY22
$28.0MFY23
$19.1MFY24
$15.0MFY25*
*FY25 is the BN 2025–27 budget's assumed beginning balance, not an audited figure. The drawdown is deliberate — spending two decades of accumulated increment to finish the waterfront before sunset.
How late each annual audit was filed
Oregon law (ORS 297.465) gives agencies six months. Zero on this chart = the legal deadline.
FY 2022 booksdue Dec 31, 2022 · signed Aug 27, 2024
20 months late
FY 2023 booksdue Dec 31, 2023 · signed Jul 24, 2025
19 months late
FY 2024 booksdue Dec 31, 2024 · signed Mar 5, 2026
14 months late
Practical effect: the ARA board adopted its final budget (June 2025) — including the $3.1M reserve decision — when the newest audited year on file was FY 2022.
Waterfront contract commitment, as disclosed in each audit
FY22 note
$3.5M
FY23 note
$17.3M
FY24 note
$17.8M
The disclosed commitment grew five-fold between the FY22 and FY23 audit notes, and FY23's "spent to date" ($2.14M) was lowerthan FY22's ($2.46M) — a cumulative number that went backwards. The contract file and amendments are the records that would explain both.
Sunset dividend — key finding
CARA's closure returns ~$1.74M/year to Albany's General Fund.
At a 25% City share (per the 2016 IFMAP), the CARA sunset returns between $1.41M/year (FY24 audited run rate) and $1.74M/year(the budget's more optimistic $6.95M/yr increment assumption) in permanent property tax capacity — roughly 64–79% of the $2.2M structural deficitidentified in the City Manager's BN 2025–2027 budget message. Every dollar of new indebtedness the board incurs before sunset pushes that dividend further out.
Disbursement audit
Who received CARA funds — contractors, loans, and transfers.
Sourced from FY 2022–2024 audited financial statements prepared by SingerLewak LLP — and re-verified year by year against the loan schedules. Forgivable loans convert to grants when (undisclosed) milestones are met; the repayable book includes one write-off, one open default, and unresolved COVID deferrals. Note: all three audits were filed 14–26 months past Oregon's statutory deadline.
Forgivable loans — year-by-year, from the audited schedules (FY 2022–2024)
RecipientDrawFY22FY23FY24Balance
Edgewater Village
Active — annual forgiveness tranches; multi-phase residential development
$1,575,200
$182,800
$373,600
$182,800
$836,000
Sable Drive LLC
Active — no forgiveness recorded through FY 2024; conditions undisclosed
$749,000
—
—
—
$749,000
Glorietta Bay LLC
Active — also a Top 10 City taxpayer per BN 2025–27 budget
$749,000
—
—
—
$749,000
Novak's Hungarian Restaurant
Fully forgiven FY 2023 — while its repayable loan sat in COVID deferral
$200,000
$40,000
$160,000
—
$0
C.H.A.N.C.E. (nonprofit)
Outstanding — FY22 audit showed it forgiven; FY23 restatement reversed that, unexplained
$75,000
—
—
—
$75,000
Ameri-Tool
Active — $5,000 forgiven each year
$30,000
$5,000
$5,000
$5,000
$15,000
CADD Connection-Yamamoto
Fully forgiven FY 2022
$83,571
$83,571
—
—
$0
Shekinah's Gate LLC
REMOVED — vanished from the schedule in the FY23 restatement with no explanation
$211,449
—
—
—
?
"FY22/23/24" columns show amounts forgiven that year. Total still outstanding at June 30, 2024: $2,424,000. Forgiveness milestone conditions are not disclosed in any audited statement or budget document.
Repayable loans — economic development portfolio
BorrowerOriginalFY24 BalanceTerms · Status
Van Vleet Properties, LLC
$744,000
$655,061
20-yr / 4.0% · Active and amortizing
Rick Mikesell (1st Ave Century Bldg)
$500,000
$304,167
20-yr / 0% interest · Active and amortizing
R3 Development
$200,000
$120,834
20-yr / 0% interest · Active — converted from forgivable in 2016
Novak's Hungarian Restaurant
$175,000
$117,720
20-yr / 0% interest · Active — COVID payment deferrals still unresolved
Natural Sprinkles Bakery
$50,000
$50,000
5-yr / interest-only · DEFAULT — principal due Jan 2023 unpaid; renegotiation open since
Signs of Victory
$100,000
$0
Annual $25k + interest · WRITE-OFF — $50,000 repaid; remaining $50,000 uncollectable FY 2023
Audit finding — TIF cycle
The Glorietta Bay LLC loop
Glorietta Bay LLC holds a $749,000 forgivable loan — still fully outstanding at June 30, 2024 — and the same entity appears in the City's BN 2025–2027 adopted budget as a Top Ten Taxpayer. Read generously, that is the intended TIF cycle: public subsidy catalyzes development, development joins the permanent tax roll. But no public document discloses the forgiveness conditions for this loan or the identical $749,000 Sable Drive LLC loan. Those agreements are the next records to request.
Audit finding — credit losses
One write-off, one open default, one vanished loan
Signs of Victory: $50,000 of a $100,000 loan pair written off as uncollectable in FY 2023. Natural Sprinkles Bakery: $50,000 principal due January 2023, unpaid, with a "renegotiation" described as ongoing in three consecutive audits and no loss allowance recorded. Shekinah's Gate LLC: a $211,449 forgivable obligation removed from the audited schedule in an unexplained FY 2023 restatement. Two of six repayable borrowers are off original terms — the loan files are public records.
Program rules
January set the guardrails; April and May spent within them.
CARA's public purpose is revitalization: reuse underused land and buildings, rehabilitate structures, increase economic vitality, and balance private-sector needs with the public interest. The 2026 grant program narrowed that purpose into reimbursement rules and a finite pool.
Total CARA grant pool: $545,000.
Minimum grantee match: 25%, added by motion on January 28.
Award structure: reimbursement after approved eligible work, with work already completed before contract notice ineligible.
Eligible work: permanent physical improvements to commercial or mixed-use property in the CARA boundary.
Project window: staff materials anticipated work and closeout through the 2025-2027 biennium.
Final payment: application materials state final payment is based on actual costs, with 10% held back for final payment.
CARA grants
The complete application demand was almost three times the pool.
Staff reported 13 applications, 12 complete, and $1,466,216.21 in complete requests. The agency allocated $545,000. The packet record shows the policy question clearly: eligibility was broad, but the money was finite.
AddressProjectRequestAward
111 W. First Avenue
Albany Civic Theater
111 W. First Avenue
Partial award for entry improvements
Request
$108,000
Award
$42,000
133 5th Avenue SE
Oregon Electric Railway Building / Sybaris
133 5th Avenue SE
Partial April award plus the final $152 balance
Request
$421,770
Award
$262,092
140 NE Hill Street
Calapooia Brewery
140 NE Hill Street
Full May award by vote record; contract should reconcile the $1 request variance
Request
$45,907
Award
$45,908
212 First Avenue E
Shultz Building / Titan Valley Brewery
212 First Avenue E
No award recorded in the May 27 final allocation
Request
$36,700
Award
$0
230 Lyons Street S
Multi-business and apartment building
230 Lyons Street S
No award recorded in the May 27 final allocation
Request
$71,655
Award
$0
241 W. First Avenue
Venetian Theater / Grove Church
241 W. First Avenue
Discussed as a community venue; no award recorded
Request
$150,000
Award
$0
333 First Avenue W
John Briggs Building
333 First Avenue W
Public comment supported completion; no award recorded
Request
$281,357.21
Award
$0
343 First Avenue
Peterson Building / Murphy Seed Store
343 First Avenue
Low-cost sewer-line request noted; no award recorded
Request
$9,720
Award
$0
635 NE Water Avenue
Deluxe Brewing
635 NE Water Avenue
Full May award for bathrooms and windows
Request
$85,900
Award
$85,900
975 Ellsworth Street SW
Furniture Share Thrift Store
975 Ellsworth Street SW
No award recorded in the May 27 final allocation
Request
$75,000
Award
$0
1400 Santiam Road SE
Cumberland Community Events Center
1400 Santiam Road SE
Full May award through CARA, not an SDC waiver
Request
$109,100
Award
$109,100
1550 Salem Avenue SE
Commercial exterior upgrade
1550 Salem Avenue SE
No award recorded in the May 27 final allocation
Request
$71,107
Award
$0
Totals
Requested
$1,466,216.21
Awarded
$545,000
300 W. First Avenue
The former Wells Fargo project has more time, and more proof due.
The May 27 packet placed the property discussion in the same meeting as the final grant awards. The open session action extended a milestone; it did not approve a city payment for alley work, utility undergrounding, or other project costs.
The ARA is party to an option-to-purchase agreement for 300 W. First Avenue, the former Wells Fargo property.
The option payment is $3,500 per month while due diligence, design, land use, and permitting work continues.
The option already required a development agreement by the end of May 2026 and had a December 2028 project completion date in the staff memo.
At the May 27 meeting, utility clearance, Pacific Power timing, alley work, and subsurface site uncertainty were raised publicly as project issues.
The agency voted 5-2 to extend the development-agreement execution milestone to November 30, 2026.
A revised project completion timeline is due within 30 days of the May 27 meeting.
No city cost-sharing for alley work, utility undergrounding, or other site work was approved in open session.
Minutes and gaps
Approved minutes and contract files are the next proof layer.
Agenda packets are enough to map the decision chain. They are not enough to close the file. The public still needs approved minutes, signed contracts, reimbursement records, and any staff materials discussed but not included in the packet.
January 28, 2026 minutes are posted as approved on April 22, 2026.
April 22, 2026 minutes appeared in draft form in the May 27 packet and were approved at the May 27 meeting with a name correction.
May 27, 2026 approved minutes were not posted at the expected minutes filename when checked.
Packet note: documents discussed at meetings but not in the packet are archived in the record and may require a request to the City Recorder.
Records to watch
The next useful records are ordinary, specific, and checkable.
ARA coverage should stay anchored in records: applications, scoring grids, contracts, reimbursement files, option amendments, estimates, timelines, and public minutes.
Executed CARA grant contracts and reimbursement terms for each award recipient
Closeout records showing eligible work completed, actual costs, 10% holdback, and final reimbursement
Sybaris contract language clarifying use of the partial award across eligible future application items
Calapooia award contract reconciling the packet request amount with the May 27 vote amount
Written staff notices to unfunded applicants after the final grant allocation
300 W. First Avenue option amendment extending the development-agreement milestone
Revised 300 W. First Avenue completion timeline due after the May 27 vote
Pacific Power estimate, utility-clearance documentation, and any undergrounding schedule
Alley improvement cost estimates and any future public cost-sharing proposal
Approved April 22 and May 27 ARA minutes once posted
Source path
Move from packet to records.
Read the meeting recap
The canonical article summarizes the May 27 CARA votes and 300 W. First action.
Financial audit & sunset dividend
Three years of audited ARA financials, SingerLewak compliance findings, and the $1.74M General Fund dividend projection.
Disbursement audit — who got the money
Every CARA contractor, forgivable loan recipient, repayable loan borrower, and intergovernmental transfer from FY 2022–2024.
Full executive summary
City-wide synthesis: 2016 IFMAP vs. 2026 reality, enterprise fund risks, burnout, ERP gaps, and the five-part risk matrix.
City Budget Watch
The citywide companion dashboard: the $494M budget, spending pace, and the five numbers worth watching.
Search the source library
Find the ARA agenda packet, strategic-plan source, and related CARA material.
Open records desk
Use source names, addresses, awards, or project milestones to shape the next request.
Check strategic-plan context
CARA closeout sits inside Albany's Healthy Economy implementation promises.