Tuesday night the task force set up to develop criteria for the use of the $2.2 million the now-defunct Industrial Development Corporation gave to the town last year reported to the Wake Forest commissioners.
            Task force chairman Jim Bell presented the succinct report which included some commentary with the bulleted recommendations.
            Their recommendations are to use 80 percent of the fund for “high impact economic development,” giving grants of between 1 and 3 percent of the projects’ increase in the tax base. The Futures Fund would be repaid through the tax revenue.
            Also, 10 percent of the fund “shall be used” to stimulate small business growth. Those would be grants of between $1,000 and $10,000 over a period of time and probably not repaid directly.
            The task force also said 10 percent of the Futures Fund should be retained at all times and recommended that at least 1 percent of the town’s tax revenue be added to the fund each year.
            The group envisions a committee to review and evaluate requests for the funds made up of the president of the chamber of commerce, the chairman of the chamber’s economic development committee, a developer or construction professional, a banker dealing with commercial lending, an attorney familiar with commercial real estate, a town resident and a town staff department head serving ex officio. Both the chamber and the town commissioners would appoint three members.
            The Wake Forest Chamber of Commerce would collect the applications for the Futures Fund and the $50 fee which would go to the chamber’s economic development committee.
            The town board will discuss the recommendations at a later time.