Here’s some info I thought may be helpful to some of you.
Luring business developers to low-income areas
WASHINGTON – Jan. 30, 2006 – Supporters of a little-known development tool known as new-market tax credits say it can work wonders in the commercial real estate market, just as the low-income housing tax credit has done in the residential market.
The program is the only federal tax credit available for commercial developments in low-income areas. Enacted in 2000, the program today is helping to revitalize streets, neighborhoods and entire downtowns in some instances.
Developments both big and small are going up because of these tax credits ranging from $500,000 to more than $150 million, and most financial specialists agree the projects would never see the light of day without the money.
The program has been key in the development of Martineau Division-Oakes, an arts-oriented, mixed-use project in Grand Rapids, Mich. Once the commercial-residential project got underway, city officials pledged $2 million for everything from landscaping and repaving to new lighting and sidewalk improvements in the project’s vicinity.
“When you’re talking about tough neighborhoods and all the costs associated with renovating dilapidated, obsolete buildings with lead and everything else, you need to combine all these resources to make it work,” says Dennis Sturtevant, president of the nonprofit group that spearheaded the Martineau Division-Oakes development.
Elsewhere, the city of Bridgeport, Conn., is on the verge of a major redevelopment of its downtown corridor, which will be partly financed with funds from new-market tax credits.
-Anthony