At the state level, Missouri’s SB 869 would create the Revitalizing Missouri Downtowns and Main Streets Act — a targeted incentive for developers and investors to take on hard conversions of vacant or underused office buildings and bring them back to life. The core of the proposal is a state tax credit equal to roughly 25% of qualified conversion expenditures, and 30% for upper‑floor housing in main street districts. Credits aren’t refundable, but they *can be carried back or forward and importantly can be transferred or sold, which makes them usable in syndication or partnership structures. There’s also an annual $50 million cap, with carve‑outs for larger buildings and Main Street projects.

Applications to the Missouri Department of Economic Development (DED) must include site control documentation, architectural and conversion plans, cost estimates, permitting status, and financing capacity — and the DED has set review and issuance windows (e.g., 60 days to issue most of the credit once final approvals are in).

On the local front in Columbia, Missouri, municipal leaders revived discussion about a Tax Increment Financing (TIF) district along Business Loop 70. A TIF district would capture future incremental tax revenues — property and sales — generated by new investment and funnel them back into infrastructure and public improvements in that corridor (like stormwater fixes and roads). Columbia officials are exploring boundaries and timing, but the intent is to attract redevelopment by reducing upfront public cost burdens.

The big picture? If SB 869 passes and a TIF district gets adopted, you could layer a state conversion tax credit with local TIF financing to make otherwise marginal redevelopment plays cash‑flow positive — especially office→residential or mixed‑use projects where infrastructure upgrades are needed to make the deal work.