Hoyt pushes for tax credit fund to support preservation projects
A last-minute legislative push could mean millions of dollars for historic preservation projects in Buffalo and across New York State.
Assemblyman Sam Hoyt, D-Buffalo, is garnering 11th hour support for a measure that would establish a state historic tax credit fund to aid commercial developers and homeowners who rehabilitate qualified properties.
“The third time could be the charm,” said Hoyt, who has gotten the tax credit bill through the State Senate twice previously, only to have it killed in the Assembly.
The proposed New York State Rehabilitation Tax Credit Act has gained senate approval for a third straight year, but could fade into oblivion if it isn’t approved by the Assembly before the legislature adjourns for
its summer recess next week.
The mayors of Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse and Albany are all backing the measure, which is aimed at spurring investment in older buildings that are sitting idle, or are under-utilized. The Buffalo Place board of directors met in special session Wednesday to approve a resolution in support of the bill.
“This is exactly what we need to spur investment in existing buildings,” said board member Howard Zemsky.
The measure would allow developers and home owners to recoup up to 20 percent of their rehabilitation costs as tax credits. At the top end, developers could get up to $5 million in credits.
Private homeowners could claim tax rebates for 25 percent of their qualified renovation costs, with a cap of $50,000.
Zemsky, a developer who revived the idle Larkin Co. warehouse to Class-A office space and has led efforts to rehabilitate the historic Darwin Martin House and H. H. Richardson complex in Buffalo, said the tax credit would greatly increase the field of developers willing to tackle faded buildings.
“Developers who haven’t been able to shoulder the risk of adaptive reuse projects would have a compelling incentive to jump in. It would save great buildings and boost the local property tax base,” Zemsky said.
Buffalo developer Rocco Termini, who has turned a number of downtown industrial buildings into successful residential/ retail developments, said the tax credits would enable him to expand his adaptive reuse resume.
“There are several projects I haven’t been able to consider because they don’t make financial sense. I couldn’t figure out a way to close the gap between the cost of the project and future revenues. This would help close that gap,” Termini said.
Hoyt said passage and signing of the rehabilitation tax credit bill would also reinforce promises from Gov. David A. Paterson and state lawmakers to bolster the upstate economy.
If approved, the state tax credits for historic rehabs would join similar federal credits as a tool for commercial developers and homeowners. Under the federal program, commercial credits cover six percent of project costs, with a $100,000 cap. Homeowners can recoup up to 20 percent of their costs, with a maximum credit of $25,000.
