Helen Burns SharpA settlement has been reached in long-running court battles over a $9 million tax break deal related to an Aetna Mountain development project, officials said today.
The agreement, if court approved, is expected to end the legal action between Chattanooga tax activist Helen Burns Sharp and the city, its Industrial Development Board and developers.
The city agreed to pay Sharp $22,500 to settle the suits she brought in connection with tax-incremental funding approved for the Black Creek development project. She had alleged the funding was based on violations of the state's open meetings law and conflicts of interest in the case.
Sharp said today she feels "positive about the outcome. I believe I made a difference in that the city does now have policies and procedures for future TIFs."
City Attorney Wade Hinton said the city is focused on moving forward.
Mike Mallen, an attorney for the developers, declined immediate comment.
Sharp's lawsuits had claimed the IDB met secretly in 2012 and again in 2014 - after Sharp won her first suit - before the panel approved and then reapproved the Black Creek TIF. The first lawsuit is now in appeals court.
See more in Wednesday's Times Free Press.