Democrats want tax credit saved
GOP tax bill ends incentive for historic preservation projects
TROY, N.Y. » Local, state and national Democratic officials spoke out in support of maintaining the Historic Preservation Tax Credit during a press conference Sunday.
U.S. Rep. Paul Tonko, D-Amsterdam, who convened the event, said the elimination of this tax credit would be devastating to communities like Troy. Sunday’s event was held at the Tech Valley Center of Gravity in the city’s downtown, a building that was renovated with the assistance of the tax credit.
The purpose of the press conference was to highlight this major economic development and revitalization program that would be cut under the GOP tax bill that passed the House of Representatives last week. The Senate has delayed action on its version of the bill
Tonko called this version of the bill a terrible outcome and a betrayal of the middle class that would raise their taxes while borrowing $2.3 trillion, with interest, to provide tax cuts primarily for the wealthy and corporate America.
“That is fundamentally flawed,” Tonko said, “That is not what we need.”
The congressman called the potential cut of the credit one of many “poison pills” within the tax bill. Tonko spoke of Troy’s ongoing revitalization of its urban core and the effort to grow the city’s tax base.
“You do that by embracing the history and heritage of the archi- tecture of this great community,” he said. “You pump life into it to grow the tax base, so that taxes will be lowered for .the people who claim Troy as their home.”
Removing the credit would mean a lot to a community like Troy, Tonko said.
“Over the years, in this community, $50 million has been realized, in terms of project restoration,” he said, explaining the credit aided a great number of those projects, rather than leaving the buildings vacant. “What we need here is that shot in the arm. We need that historic tax credit. It’s economically wise to invest in that tax credit.
“It’s an urban recovery program. It’s a tax base extension program. It makes every bit of sense to do this, and if we don’t do it, it means people will pay more in property taxes here at home.”
Assemblyman John McDonald, D-Cohoes, said that since the state enhanced the federal credit in 2013, $3 billion in investment has been made in commercial properties throughout the state. In the Capital Region, 63 projects with $268 million in rehabilitation costs have been undertaken, most of which were done by the private sector. In addition to the Quackenbush Building, where the Tech Valley Center of Gravity is located, McDonald mentioned Harmony Mills in Cohoes and Tilley Lofts in Watervliet among other projects that have used the Historic Preservation Tax Credit to spur redevelopment and create local tax revenue.
McDonald believes these positives occur when municipalities
are given the proper tools, like the credit.
“This critical tool is one that we cannot forget,” he said.
Troy Mayor Patrick Madden said the credit has leveraged more than $132 billion of private investment in communities across the country since it was first enacted in 1976 and has saved more than 42,000 buildings. That investment is at the heart of the downtown resurgence of the past decade.
“The renaissance we are experiencing in Troy has a
number of factors and contributors, but the one indisputable and common link for all of them is the historic tax credit,” he said. “More than two dozen of our iconic structures have been renovated only because of the availability of that tax credit.”
The mayor said those renovations have brought jobs and new life to the city, adding to the tax base and supporting local businesses.
“And it’s now finally spreading beyond our downtown,” Madden said, identifying tax credit projects being completed and proposed in the North Central and South Central neighborhoods. “Those that are not
completed yet, those that are in the design phases, are all at risk now because of the potential elimination of this tax credit.”
Madden further criticized that the tax bill will add $2.3 trillion in debt, calling it “kick the can down the road legislation,” and noting that the next generation will be left to deal with that problem.
“I call on the House to reconsider this shameful bill that hurts us now and hurts our children tomorrow,” he said. “I call on the Senate to reject what the House has passed.” Instead, Madden asked for a responsible bill that allows economic progress to con- tinue and treats the middle class fairly. “Do what is right for our economy and for our people, both today and tomorrow,” he said.