[Adopted 9-21-2004 by Ord. No. 04-10]
Pursuant to the authority granted by R.I.G.L.
§ 44-3-9 and the affirmative majority vote of the Financial
Town Meeting of the Town of Lincoln held on May 15, 2003, it is hereby
declared that it may be in the best interests of the Town of Lincoln,
from time to time, to enter into agreements that will exempt from
payment, in whole or in part, real property utilized for manufacturing,
commercial, or industrial purposes or, in the alternative, to determine
a stabilized amount of taxes to be paid on account of the ownership
of property notwithstanding the assessed value of the property of
the rate of tax in that entering such agreements shall serve to attract
new business development to the Town or to encourage redevelopment,
expansion or rehabilitation of existing real business properties.
As used in this article, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
The tax year immediately prior to the year in which any agreement
hereunder is in effect.
The Lincoln Comprehensive Plan as it may be in effect from
time to time.
Buildings or structures utilized primarily to house office
space for rental to others or for the use of the owner of the buildings
or structures.
The tax stabilization program enacted by this article and
any and all agreements entered into by the Town and taxpayers in accordance
with the provisions of this article.
Any buildings or structures that are utilized essentially
for offices or commercial enterprises.
Any buildings or structures that are utilized primarily and
essentially for the production, assembly, or fabrication of materials
for sale to others.
That any redevelopment, rehabilitation, or expansion of existing
buildings or structures must increase the assessed value of any such
buildings or structures a minimum of 20% above the assessed value
of such buildings or structures in the base year. In the case of new
business development, the new construction shall have a minimum assessed
value of $1,000,000, excluding the value of land and infrastructure
improvements.
The goals and objectives of the Town of Lincoln
in establishing the Program are:
A.
The primary objective of the Program is to expand
the property tax base of the Town.
B.
The Program seeks to encourage expansion, redevelopment,
and/or rehabilitation of existing manufacturing, industrial, and commercial
buildings or structures as well as the new development of manufacturing,
industrial, and commercial buildings or structures on appropriately
zoned land.
C.
The Program seeks encourage those uses that maximized
the tax value of properties, the economic value of properties, and
the visual and aesthetic quality of the Town's industrial and commercial
areas.
D.
The Program seeks to encourage significant rehabilitation,
expansion of existing buildings or structures and the new development
of industrial and commercial properties.
E.
The Program shall provide increasing, graduated incentives
to promote greater levels of rehabilitation, redevelopment, expansion
and/or new construction.
F.
The Program seeks to promote stability of ownership
of the industrial and commercial properties within the Town.
G.
The Program seeks to attract and/or retain responsible
corporate citizens.
H.
The Program seeks to offer incentives, not rewards,
to encourage and promote real estate investment and development.
I.
The Program seeks to encourage projects that are consistent
with the Town's community vision, goals, and objectives.
J.
The Program shall be equally and fairly applied to
any and all eligible proposed projects.
The following parameters are established as
the means of implementation of the Town's goals and objectives established
in the previous section of this article. The lettered subsections
in this section correspond to the identical letters in the immediately
preceding section.
A.
The Program shall not result in the reduction in the
Town's tax levy for any participating property relative to the base
year assessment. The incentives shall apply only to expansion, redevelopment,
or rehabilitation and shall not affect existing building assessment.
B.
The Program shall be limited to buildings and not
land or personal property.
C.
Eligible uses include (but are not limited to) manufacturing,
office, sales, service and distribution. Excluded (but not limited
to) uses are warehousing/storage and trucking terminals.
D.
"Significant" means redevelopment or rehabilitation
must result in an assessed value of a building not less than 20% above
the previous year's assessment. New construction must have a minimum
assessed value of $1,000,000, excluding the value of land and infrastructure
improvements.
E.
The greater the increase in value under the Program,
the greater and longer the effects of the tax incentive.
F.
Benefits under the Program shall not, except in limited
circumstances, be assignable.
G.
Failure to comply with local ordinances or failure
to pay property taxes in a timely manner will result in the revocation
of the tax incentives granted under an agreement.
H.
Eligible projects for participation in the Program
must be so identified prior to the commencement of development, redevelopment
and/or rehabilitation or of new construction.
I.
A proposed project must be determined to be in compliance
with the relevant provisions of the Town's Comprehensive Plan in order
to participate in the Program.
J.
The Program shall be designed as an omnibus program
rather than drafting different tax stabilization ordinances on a project-by-project
basis while recognizing certain elements of any agreement will be
project-specific and will vary in details from the omnibus provision.
Any proposed project that qualifies for participation
in the Tax Stabilization Program under the provisions of this article
may be entered into subject to and upon the following:
A.
The specific terms and conditions of any agreement
and the Town under the provisions of this amendment shall be negotiated
by the Town Administrator.
B.
The proposed agreement shall be for a period not exceeding
20 years.
C.
Any tentative agreement negotiated and reached by
a project proponent and the Administrator on behalf of the Town shall
be subject to approval by an affirmative, majority vote of the Town
Council. The vote of the Town Council shall be taken only after public
hearing on the question has been held, which public hearing shall
be held only after a minimum of 10 days' notice shall have been given
by publication in a newspaper of general circulation in the Town of
Lincoln.
D.
In order to approve any tentative agreement under
this article, the Town Council must determine:
(1)
The approval of the agreement (for tax exemption or
stabilization of taxes) will inure to the benefit of the Town of Lincoln
by reason of the willingness of the manufacturing or commercial concern
to locate in the Town; or the willingness of the manufacturing or
commercial concern to expand its facilities with an increase in employment
or the willingness of a manufacturing or commercial concern to retain
or expand its facility in the Town and not substantially reduce its
work force in the Town; or an improvement in the physical plant of
the Town that will result in a long-term economic benefit to the Town
and state; or
(2)
The approval of the agreement (for exemption or stabilization
of taxes) will inure to the benefit of the Town by reason of the willingness
of a manufacturing or commercial concern or property owner to construct
new or to replace, reconstruct, convert, expand, retain or remodel
existing buildings or facilities with modern buildings or facilities
resulting in an increase or maintenance in plant or the manufacturing
or commercial building investment by the firm or property owner in
the Town.
E.
Except as provided in this article, the payment of
taxes under the agreement (either as exempted or which is subject
to a stabilized amount of taxes) shall not, during the period of the
agreement, be further liable to taxation by the Town so long as the
property is utilized for the manufacturing or commercial purposes
for which the agreement was entered into.
Notwithstanding any findings, determinations,
or vote of the Town Council, any property otherwise qualified under
the Program and subject to an agreement (for exemption or stabilization
of taxes) shall be assessed for and shall pay that portion of the
tax assessed by the Town for the purpose of paying the indebtedness
of the Town and the indebtedness of the state or any political subdivision
thereof to the extent assessed upon or apportioned to the Town, and
the interest thereon, and for the appropriation to any sinking fund
of the Town, which portion of the tax shall be paid in full, and the
taxes so assessed and collected shall be kept in a separate account
and used only for that purpose.
Nothing in this article shall be deemed to permit
the exemption or stabilization of taxes as herein provided for any
manufacturing or commercial concern relocation from one city or town
within the State of Rhode Island to another.
