Property owners and businesses at Oakley Station are in line for reduced special assessments next year after a Cincinnati City Council committee voted Tuesday to advance an emergency ordinance cutting the levies collected in 2027.
The Housing & Growth Committee recommended passage of the measure at its Aug. 4 meeting in Council Chambers, according to committee records. The ordinance now heads to the full council for a final vote. Because it carries an emergency designation, it would take effect immediately upon approval.
The reduction applies to special assessments that appear on property tax bills alongside tax year 2026 charges. City Manager Sheryl M. M. Long submitted the ordinance, which adjusts the assessment amounts based on a report from the bond administrator for the Port of Greater Cincinnati Development Authority.
The city has amended the Oakley Station assessment framework every year since the original Ordinance No. 228-2012 established it in June 2012. This marks the 14th consecutive annual adjustment.
How the assessments work
The Port issued $6.8 million in tax-exempt bonds in cooperation with the city to finance $5 million in public infrastructure at the 73-acre development, according to the Port's project profile. That infrastructure included street construction, traffic signals and sewer and water line improvements. The special assessments collected from property owners within the district help service that debt.
The specific dollar amount of the 2027 reduction was not included in the committee record. The bond administrator's report, which determines the annual adjustment, has not been made public.
Steve Dragon, vice president of developer Vandercar Holdings, has said in the Port's project profile that the firm "could not have gotten off the ground without the Redevelopment Authority's involvement on the front end." Vandercar Holdings and USS Realty developed the site.
What's at Oakley Station
The mixed-use development at 4701 Marburg Ave. sits on the former Cincinnati Milacron Machine Tool Co. site, which held 1.5 million square feet of dormant industrial buildings until 2011. Today it houses a Kroger Marketplace, a 14-screen Cinemark Theater, The Boulevard at Oakley Station (a 450-apartment complex developed by Flaherty & Collins) and an Anthem office building. The project's value was projected at $250 million at completion, up from a $16 million pre-development land appraisal.
The assessment vote comes as the broader Oakley corridor continues recovering from flash flooding that struck July 17, prompting dozens of rescues across Cincinnati's East Side. The city announced a $1 million relief fund on July 24 for affected homeowners and small businesses in Oakley, Hyde Park and Mt. Lookout.
What's next
The full Cincinnati City Council is expected to vote on the ordinance Aug. 5. If approved, the lower assessments will be reflected on 2026 property tax bills mailed to Oakley Station property owners next year.
