School board fed up with tax breaks
PHOENICIA, N.Y. » The Onteora school board plans to remain silent on a proposed payment-in-lieu-of-taxes deal being sought by the developer of the Woodstock Way hotel.
At a Board of Education meeting Tuesday, trustees said they plan to issue a blanket objection to the type of tax breaks being sought but will not direct their concerns to a specific application.
“I think we should send a strong message to the county legislators that represent the district here,” Trustee Bennett Ratcliff said.
The objections come as public sentiment against the tax deals appears to be building in the area, including opposition to tax breaks for boutique hotels in Uptown Kingston and two senior apartment buildings in the city,
Ulster County lawmakers have appointment authority for the Industrial Development Agency, which considers such tax agreements. However, the agency’s budget comes from the fees it charges for reviewing and approving applications.
Agency officials set a Wednesday deadline for public comments on the Woodstock Way application.
Developer Tannery Brook Real Estate LLC is seeking to have $305,338 in property taxes waived over a 10-year period. Without the agreement, there would be an estimated $640,721 paid in taxes. The agreement would reduce the amount to $335,383.
School districts are hurt by PILOT deals because they reduce the increase limit for school property taxes from year to year.
Onteora Trustee Laurie Osmond said it was encouraging that there were objections raised by Woodstock Town Board members last week during an agency public hearing on the Woodstock Way plan.
On the application for tax relief, the developers, which already has begun construction, reports having paid $17,671 in property taxes for the undeveloped site and says it expects to see the figure rise to $58,515 following construction if the PILOT application is not approved.
The project received town approval in 2016, and the developer plans to open the 23-unit hotel in May 2019. The plan includes tearing down five of the six buildings that were on the site when the property was purchased four years ago and constructing seven new buildings.
The application also seeks Industrial Development Agency approval to waive $198,000 in sales taxes paid during construction and $24,198 in mortgage recording taxes.