After years of debate and dispute, Collier commissioners have approved a change in collection of interim property taxes on new construction.

The action, which was approved unanimously Aug. 12, allows the township to collect money sooner on new structures that become occupied after Jan. 1, the date that Allegheny County uses to set assessments.

For example, if someone moved into a new home in July, that structure would not be put on the township tax rolls until Jan. 1 of the next year, thus giving the owner a six-month reprieve from paying property taxes. Under the new ordinance, the property would be subject to taxes the day it is occupied.

Properties that are completed and occupied after Jan. 1 have been able to escape some property tax bills because of this loophole.

The new policy takes effect Jan. 1.

The Chartiers Valley School District, of which Collier is a part, has been collecting interim taxes for a number of years.

Chartiers Valley director of finance and support operations Nicholas Morelli said the district collected $791,000 in interim taxes -- most of it from Collier -- for the 2007-08 school year.

"We've benefitted from the collection of interim taxes," Mr. Morelli said.

For Chartiers Valley school director Mary Lou Petronsky, collecting interim taxes is a no-brainer.

"Why would you throw money away like that? It's not fair for the buyers of older houses to have to pay taxes from the day they move in when the buyers of newly built homes do not. You can't have two standards," she said.

Proponents of the tax have argued that residents of new homes use the same municipal and school district services as do those who move into older homes.

Those who have opposed the levy have complained that municipalities and school districts should encourage new construction by leaving the so-called grace period intact.

Another developer is on the horizon with plans for a retail complex, office building and hotel for Collier Crossing, an 80-acre site that now includes the Trader Jack Flea Market in Collier.

ECHO Real Estates Services Inc. of O'Hara -- the real estate arm of Giant Eagle -- has proposed a shopping center with retailers such as Target, Kohl's and Giant Eagle for the property, which is between Route 50 and Interstate 79.

The development would mean considerable infrastructure improvements, including a ramp at the Kirwan Heights interchange and the probable widening of Route 50.

Financing may come from state sources and a 20-year tax increment financing plan that would involve real estate taxes only.

Allegheny County Council, Chartiers Valley school directors and Collier commissioners recently have separately approved nonbinding resolutions to study the proposed plan and the merits of the proposed TIF. School district approval took place July 29. and Collier's was Aug. 12.

In the last 10 years, at least three developers have looked into development of the Collier Crossing property, which is owned by brothers Jack and Jim Cargnoni.