H.278
An Act Relating to Downtown Community Development
The following are the highlights of the law, to see a more in depth look click here
A municipality must have a "designated downtown" to participate in this process.
1) Produce a map that delineates the downtown district.
2) Demonstrate a commitment to planning through the adoption of:
a design control district created as part of the zoning regulations, or a local historic district created as part of the zoning regulations, or an urban renewal district, or a development review board that can undertake local Act 250 reviews.
3) Have an executed community reinvestment agreement agreed to by a wide variety of downtown interests that contains the following provisions:
a) the delineation of the downtown that is part of or contains a district that is listed or eligible for listing on the national Register of Historic Places;
b) a capital improvement plan for infrastructure within the district;
c) a source of funding to fulfill the community reinvestment agreement through at
least one of the following:
special assessment district, or authority to enter into tax stabilization agreements, or a commitment to implement a tax incremental financing district, or other multiple year financial commitments.
4) The organizational structure necessary to sustain a comprehensive and long-term downtown revitalization effort.
5) Evidence that it has or will have the necessary water and sewer capacity to service the downtown revitalization.
Designation Incentives
1) Priority consideration by any agency of the State administering state or federal assistance programs providing funding or other aid to a municipal downtown area.
2) A state tax credit of 5% - an addition to the current federal RITC (Reinvestment Tax Credit).
3) A state tax credit of 25% - for qualified expenditures on older and historic buildings.
4) A planning grant, not to exceed $8,000 per site for initial site assessment of a suspected contaminated site that qualifies for the Community Development Block Grant program.
5) Eligibility for financing of transportation projects under the state infrastructure bank.
6) Eligibility for current owners and prospective purchasers who otherwise qualify under the redevelopment of contaminated sites program or in the case of current owners who are innocent owners.
7) Technical assistance by the Department of housing and Community Affairs with regard to planning and coordination issues, adaptive reuse of buildings, marketing plans, development of programs to encourage rehabilitation of building facades, and in coordination with the Agency of Transportation, planning for multimodal transportation.
8) Hospitality training to be arranged by the Department of Tourism and Marketing.
9) Promotion of the downtown development district by the Department of Tourism and Marketing as part of the Department's integrated marketing and promotion program.
10) Technical support from the Department of Labor & Industry for the rehabilitation of older and historic buildings.
11) A rebate of up to $2,000 to the owner of a building who installs a complete automatic fire sprinkler system and has been certified for one of the state tax credits.
12) Eligibility to participate in the downtown transportation and related capital improvement fund program.
The fund will be administered by the downtown development board providing loans, loan guarantees or grants for capital transportation and related improvement projects to support economic development. Grants may not exceed 25% of the overall project cost or exceed $250,000 annually, and the amount in the fund for FY1999 is $400,000.
13) Receipts from sales tax on construction materials used on qualified projects in designated downtowns may be paid back to the municipality in the following ways:
1) population is under 7,500 - all receipts in excess of $100,000 with no more than $600,000 awarded to all municipalities in this category;
2) population is greater than 7,500 but less than 30,000 - all receipts in excess of $200,000 with no more than $600,000 awarded to all municipalities in this category;
3) population is greater than 30,000 - all receipts in excess of $1,000.000 with no more than $800,000 awarded to all municipalities in this category.
14) A planning grant with matching funds from the CDBG program for eligible communities up to $40,000.
15) Allows a designated downtown to post speed limits of less than 25 mph.
16) Allows alternative signs in designated downtowns.
17) Provides up to a $400 tax credit for job training if a person is moving off TANIF or ANFC.
To view the more in depth version of this bill click here.