WPCNR QUILL & EYESHADE. By John F. Bailey. July 19, 2007: The Ritz Carlton 221 Main project, the recently remediated “Brownfield” (completed in December 2006) stands to be eligible to tap approximately $4 Million maximum in property tax rebates annually beginning in 2009.
As reported earlier this week by WPCNR, Cappelli Enterprises and its partners in 221 Main Street are eligible for the maximum “Remediated Brownfield Credit for Real Property Taxes,” adding to the $110 Million or $75 Million by Mr. Cappelli’s count, tax credits the developer has already been assured for having cleaned up and developed a Brownfield site. Vice President of Cappelli Enterprises, Bruce Berg, (shown above) confirmed to WPCNR today that the 221 Main project expects 400 new employees on the entire site. WPCNR calculates that number of new jobs would earn The Cappelli Team a maximum of $4 Million in property tax relief, depending on how the City assessed the project.
Bruce Berg, Vice President for Cappelli Enterprises, issued a statement to WPCNR today confirming that 221 Main Street (site of the Ritz Carlton Westchester) is located within an En-Zone that entitles the Cappelli Partners as much as $2 Million in property tax rebates, depending on how the City Assessor assesses the Ritz-Carlton property after it is fully occupied.
An En-Zone is an area designated by the New York State Commissioner of Economic Development prior to December 31, 2003. In order to be considered an En Zone, an area must have a poverty rate of at least 20% and an unemployment rate of at least 1-1/4 times the statewide unemployment rate as of the 2000 census.
How the Partners Get Property Tax Credits.
The Property Tax Credit is earned based on the number of new jobs Cappelli Enterprises brings to the former Brownfield area. Mr Berg explained, in his written statement:
We expect to have more than 200 employees on the entire site including the hotel, restaurants, garage operation and condos. We also expect that there will be another several hundred employees in the office portion of the project.
The property tax credit is not $2 Million (200 employees x $10,000 per employee). The tax refund for Brownfield sites with more than 100 (new) employees is 100% of actual taxes paid. The refund is CAPPED however at $10,000 per employee.
WPCNR had originally, based on previous statements by the Mayor of White Plains, conservatively put the property tax rebate maximum at $2 Million, figuring that the site would bring in 150-200 employees. At 400 employees, the Cappelli partners will be eligible for $4 Million maximum in property tax credits, depending on how the City of White Plains assesses the property when fully occupied.
WPCNR points out that the property tax relief is paid to the developer by New York State, and is not refunded by the City of White Plains or the City School District. The city and school district will not lose any property tax revenue when the Cappelli organization applies for the Remediated Brownfield Credit for Real Property Taxes in 2009, as Louis Cappelli has said to WPCNR he plans to do.
