Committee reviews annual FAIR report on Bethlehem economic-development incentives

The Community Development Committee of the Bethlehem City Council on a hearing day reviewed the city’s 2024 Financial Accountability Incentive Reporting (FAIR) presentation, receiving updates and asking staff questions about LERTA zones, the City Revitalization and Improvement Zone program, the enterprise zone, several legacy loan funds and how in-lieu affordable-housing payments will be used.

The FAIR presentation — delivered by Sean Ziller, administration representative, with Alex Miller, economic development coordinator, and Laura Collins, director of community and economic development — summarized program inventories, valuation reports and beneficiary impact statements for 2024. Committee chair Hilary Kwiatek and council members Grace Kramsy Smith, Kira Wilhelm and Rachel Leon asked staff about zone expirations, fee-in-lieu collections and program administration.

Why it matters: FAIR is the council’s annual transparency review of tax and non-tax incentives the city uses to spur private investment and job creation. Committee members pressed staff about whether incentives are achieving intended outcomes, how fee‑in‑lieu funds will be allocated for affordable housing and whether legacy loan programs are being used.

City staff described the status of several major incentives. On LERTA (Local Economic Revitalization Tax Assistance), staff said Bethlehem maintains two active LERTA districts on the South Side: an affordable-housing LERTA adopted in 2021 that expires at the end of 2026, and a South Side LERTA 2 adopted in 2023 that expires…