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Crown Point committee renews most tax abatements, flags six properties for closer review
Summary
The Crown Point City Human Resources and Economic Development Committee on May 5 recommended renewal of a list of commercial tax abatements and agreed to monitor six properties that fell short of projected employment or assessed-value targets, with possible corrective action next year if targets are not met.
The Crown Point City Human Resources and Economic Development Committee on May 5 recommended renewal of tax abatement agreements for a group of commercial properties and agreed to keep six other properties under increased monitoring after staff said those six fell short of projected employee or valuation figures.
Attorney Dan Camudio, who represents several petitioners, told the committee that state SB-1 forms require applicants to provide estimates and that the city and council must judge the reasonableness of those estimates. "The character of this abatement application and annual compliance is stunning, for lack of better words," Camudio said, adding that landlords and tenants were working together to meet the original projections and that some tenants were entrepreneurial small businesses.
The committee approved renewals for the properties staff recommended. The addresses on the recommended-for-approval list read into the record included 800 East Porter Street; 60112 (address number as read in transcript); 11151 Virginia; 1085 Millennium Drive; 1190 Arrowhead Court; 945 Hub Court; 11181 Virginia; 11171 Virginia; 11000 Virginia; 11100 Virginia; and 39600 And Eleventh Courts. The committee then considered six properties that staff said were short on employees, payroll, or assessed valuation: 11245 Delaware; 1170 Arrowhead Court; 515 East A 110th; 501 East A 112th Court; 551 East A 112th Court; and 425 to 455 Monitor Street.
Camudio told the committee he had spoken with landlords, and said one landlord, Alex Pessopoulos, had already informed him that a tenant had hired one new employee. Staff recommended continuing the abatements for the six properties while monitoring progress over the next year and returning with a deeper review if the properties did not move toward the targets. A committee member noted that one property is in year 10 of 10 on its abatement schedule, while others have one or two years remaining.
After discussion the committee voted to approve the recommended-for-approval list and to note the six shortfall properties for increased scrutiny as part of the annual review process. Committee members asked staff to stay in contact with landlords and tenants and to report back if the properties make no noticeable improvement within 12 months; the committee said corrective action, including adjusting the length of benefits, could follow if targets are not met.
No specific vote tallies or the names of members who made or seconded the motions were recorded in the public transcript. The committee moved on to miscellaneous business and then adjourned.
