Explanation
BACKGROUND: This legislation authorizes the Development Director to amend the Enterprise Zone Agreement (EZA) with US Industrial REIT (USIR), successor in interest to Rickenbacker III LLC (an assignee of Pizzuti Franklin II Limited). Council approved the EZA by Ordinance No. 2195-95 on September 25, 1995 and approved transfer of the EZA to USIR by Ordinance No. 903-02 on June 10, 2002. The amendment will eliminate the personal property tax abatement and the requirement for personal property investment. The real property investment has been made and the tax abatement on real property will remain intact.
The project is a 340,000 square foot multi-tenant warehouse constructed at 2250 Spiegel Drive in Columbus (Rickenbacker area). The EZA provided a 75%/10-yr tax abatement on real property improvements and a 25%/10-yr tax abatement on the M & E of the anchor tenant, Marriott Distribution Services, Inc. The project investment was to be $11 million in real property improvements, $4.4 million in tenant M & E and $3 million in tenant inventory. Marriott Distribution Services closed its operations and moved out of the facility in 1998. The property owner subsequently secured three new tenants.
While the investment requirement in the real property has been met, we are not able to determine if the personal property investment has been met because only one of the three current tenants has been willing to report information personal property investment at the project site. The current tenants are not using the personal property tax abatement. The Columbus Tax Incentive Council voted unanimously on November 13, 2003, to recommend that the City amend the EZA to eliminate the personal property tax abatement as well as the requirement for personal property investment.
FISCAL IMPACT: No funding is required for this legislation.
Title
To authorize the Development Director to amend the Enterprise Zone Agreement (EZA) with USIR, elimi...
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