Tax deals authority limited, assessor says

There are two groups of payment-in-lieu-oftaxes agreements that can be applied to properties in the city of Kingston and the Common Council only has authority over one, the city assessor said.

“There always seems to be some misconception as to what they are, who has the authority to grant them,” city Assessor Daniel Baker told the Common Council during a caucus meeting Monday.

He said one group of paymentin-lieu-of-taxes, or PILOT, agreements is wholly controlled by the Ulster County Industrial Development Agency.

The city has sole control only over the deals that fall under Private Housing Finance Law 577, which are typically housing agreements, Baker said.

Baker said the Industrial Development Agency is able to grant the tax deals under state Real Property Tax Law 412-a. He said the agency follows a Uniform Tax Exempt Policy when considering such agreements.

“They have complete authority over that,” Baker said. “This Common Council is not involved in that process. Where the Common Council gets involved (with) the Ulster County (Industrial Development Agency) is when an applicant and the (agency) wants to deviate from their standard policy.”

In the event of a deviation, the Industrial Development Agency still retains complete control over whether to grant it or not, Baker said.

“In a deviation, all affected taxing jurisdictions are asked by the (Industrial Development Agency) for written consent,” Baker said, “a resolution supporting the proposed deviation.” He said that is a courtesy to find out whether the city and other taxing jurisdictions, like the school district, agree with the deviation.

The payment deals in lieu of taxes that the city controls are for properties owned by a housing development fund company and are used for low-income housing, Baker said. He said examples include the Lace Mill project, owned by affordable housing agency RUPCO, and Birchwood Village.

“The city itself has the

authority to grant the exemption and enter into a payment-in-lieu-of-taxes agreement that they see fit,” Baker said.

In response to questions,

Baker said there are approximately 10 city controlled payment-in-lieu-taxes deals in Kingston. He added that the deals allow applicants to predict their future costs,

which provides a guarantee to them and to their mortgage lenders.

Baker also said that in the case of a deal granted for the owner of the Gov. Clinton and Yosman Tower buildings, the applicant agreed to pay more per housing unit than other similar property owners have paid. He said the city was also able to negotiate some additional provisions within the deal, which included using local workers for renovations and the configuration of the entrance and exit to the property.