Incentive Programs & Economic Development ToolkitOctober 2012

The City of HamiltonB U T L E R C O U N T Y O H I OEconomic Development

Community Reinvestment Area

The Community Reinvestment Area (CRA) provides property owners a tax exemption for investing in property improvements. The goal of the CRA is to incentivize revitalization where barriers to investment exist.

The CRA tax exemption is available for both residential and commercial development and both new development and renovations. The CRA tax exemption can be utilized throughout Hamilton, but the urban core is part of a special district which the CRA benefits are most powerful. The abatement is for ten years.

CRA can be use for:

• New construction• Expansion• Building improvements• Commercial or industrial

Applications will be considered on a case-by-case basis for investment dollar and job creation potential. The tax exemption percentage will be determined on a case-by-case basis and final exemption value is determined by the Butler County Auditor.

Enterprise ZoneThe City of Hamilton may grant property tax incentives to enterprises that agree to establish, expand, renovate, or occupy a facility within a designated enterprise zone and agree to retain or create employment at the project’s location. A business must finalize an agreement prior to project commencement.

The maximum allowable benefit to be extended to qualifying companies that does not require local school board approval is a 75%, 10-year real property tax exemption. Real property tax exemptions greater than 75%, 10 years, require local school board approval.

Tax Incentives

Hamilton’s CRA Map

Enterprise Zone Example

Assumptions: 70,000 S/F building at $50 per S/F, total property investment $3.5 million, 75% tax abatement

Total Possible Property Tax Abatement

Annual $54,384.92 10 Year Total $543,849.19

Final abatement value will be determined by the Butler County Auditor’s Office

The City of Hamilton Local Job Creation Tax Credit Program offers eligible companies a tax credit against their local corporate earnings tax. This program is similar to the Ohio Job Creation Tax Credit, with the exceptions that the tax credit is granted at the local level and it is a non-refundable credit. Currently, by State law, eligibility for this credit is dependent upon the State of Ohio granting a tax credit through the Ohio Job Creation Tax Credit Program.

Local Job Creation Tax Credits

Ohio Job Creation Tax CreditsThe Job Creation Tax Credit is a refundable tax credit to companies generally creating at least 10 new jobs (within 3 years) with a minimum annual payroll of $660,000 that pay at least 150% of the federal minimum wage.

Workers at ThyssenKrupp Bilstein

Tax Increment FinancingTax Increment Financing (TIF) is an economic development mechanism available to local governments in Ohio to finance public infrastructure improvements. A TIF works by locking in the taxable worth of real property at the value it holds at the time the authorizing legislation was approved.

Payments derived from the increased assessed value of any improvement to real property beyond that amount are directed towards a separate fund to finance the construction of public infrastructure defined within the TIF legislation. Hamilton has enacted legislation to utilize TIF financing and often works with potential development to allow parcels to benefit from TIF financing.

Interstate Warehousing of Ohio is part of a TIF district

Groundbreaking at Bethesda Butler County’s new Emergency Room, which is part of an Enterprise Zone

Revolving Loan FundsBrownfields Cleanup RLFUse of Brownfields Cleanup Revolving Loan Fund (BCRLF) dollars is limited to sites that have an actual release or substantial threat of release of a “hazardous substance” into the environment. BCRLF funds may be used at sites that are either publicly owned, either directly by a municipality or indirectly through a quasi-public entity; or privately owned and with clear means of recouping BCRLF expenditures.

Commercial RLFThe City of Hamilton’s Revolving Loan Fund (RLF) provides low interest loans for expansion projects by private, for-profit businesses occurring in Hamilton. Loans are made primarily for the purchase of machinery and equipment, although purchase, renovation and/or construction of buildings are also eligible.

Financing Programs

Ohio Enterprise Bond FundThe enterprise bond fund provides revenue bond financing through an S&P rated fund, whereby proceeds from the sale of bonds are loaned to companies for fixed-rate, long-term capital asset financing.

Ohio GrowNow ProgramWhen a business is approved for a loan at an eligible bank, GrowNOW provides an additional three percent discount on the loan’s already negotiated interest rate. The program can be used by businesses that are organized for profit, have less than 150 employees and are headquartered in Ohio. The maximum loan is $400,000 and there is no application deadline.

Ohio Minority Business District Loan ProgramThe Ohio Minority Business Direct Loan program provides fixed, low-interest rate loans to certified minority-owned businesses that are purchasing or improving fixed assets and creating or retaining jobs.

Brownfield Remediation Before and After

1400 South Erie Highway prior to the brownfield redevelopment

1400 South Erie Highway after the brownfield redevelopment

The demolition of 1550 Grand, the former Marcell’s Used Auto Parks

166 Direct LoanThe 166 Direct Loan provides loans for land and building acquisition, construction, expansion, or renovation, and equipment purchases for eligible businesses. The program provides low-interest loans up to $1.5 million.

Regional 166 Direct LoanThe Regional 166 Direct Loan provides loans for land and building acquisition, construction, expansion, or renovation, and equipment purchases for eligible businesses. Local economic development agencies administer the program. It provides low-interest loans up to 75% collateral value, not to exceed $500,000.

SBA 504 LoanThe SBA 504 loan offers long-term financing at a below-market rate. Possibilities with this loan include real estate acquisition, new construction, renovation of existing buildings, machinery and equipment acquisition, and project-related soft costs.

Butler County Port Authority (BCPA)The BCPA provides alternative financing options for medium and large-scale projects in Butler County. The BCPA collaborates and partners with executives, economic development professionals, financial professionals, and the business community to encourage economic development in Butler County and Southwest Ohio.

Ohio Revised Code Section 4582 provides the Butler County Port Authority with a number of tools to finance and manage projects in Ohio, including capital lease arrangements and sales tax exemption.

The Valeo building with its recent expansion

Vora Technology Park

The Historic Mercantile Lofts redevelopment has both a TIF and a Utility Development Agreement

Utility Development Agreement

Other Tools

Butler County Land Reutilization Corp.

Through the “Moving Ohio Forward” grant program, the Attorney General allocated a total of $75 million to all 88 counties in Ohio to facilitate the reclamation, rehabilitation, and reutilization of vacant, abandoned, tax-foreclosed, or other real property. The Land Bank provides the City an opportunity to demolish nuisance properties and to promote economic and housing development. The Land Bank will be an important tool to make Hamilton a more livable, more economically vibrant community.

Design Assistance ProgramThe program provides business owners interested in renovating an existing or constructing a new building with a grant of up to $2,500, to be used for professional architectural/technical services. Design services eligible for funding include those that provide the following:

• Floor plans showing existing and/or new construction; • Building façade improvements; and • Preliminary building, zoning and safety code analysis.

With municipally owned and operated utilities, the City of Hamilton is not only one of Ohio’s lowest-cost providers of electricity, natural gas, water & wastewater, but is also widely acknowledged for its superior quality. The City of Hamilton is committed to working with your company from the beginning to ensure that service to the site is ample and will explore ways to control and lower utility costs as you grow.

The Matandy site

This building’s facade (home to Riverbank Cafe) utilized the Design Assistance Program

Blighted, vacant buildings can be demolished or sold to be renovated

Workforce One

Business Development TeamThe Hamilton Business Development Team is a cross-functional team comprised of Economic Development staff representatives with the goal of providing efficient and effective communications to businesses that are considering expanding, relocating, or starting-up in the City of Hamilton. The Business Development Team concept will serve as a single point of contact and direct one-on-one communication to businesses throughout the process rather than requiring businesses to navigate a maze of multiple departments and individuals. The team streamlines the process on the City’s end as well ensuring expediency through the business review process.

Workforce One of Butler County is a “one-stop” career center for employment and training needs. Workforce One works with Butler County employers to assist them with their staffing needs. All services offered at the Workforce One of Butler County are free.

Job postingsOhio Means Jobs, a statewide electronic job-matching system, allows employers to post job openings and search online for resumes. Employers may also post jobs in Workforce One’s Resource Room where job seekers visit to look for employment and/or training opportunities.

Assistance with employment applica-tionsWorkforce One will maintain a supply of your company’s employment applications on site so that candidates can apply at our single, convenient location.

Applicant screeningWorkforce One has widely-used assessment materials, which measure basic skills, aptitudes, interests, etc.

Pease Warehouse Grand Re-Opening, one of the Business Development Team’s recent success stories. Photo Courtesy of Greg Lynch, Hamilton Journal-News

Construction at Pease Warehouse. Photo Courtesy of Greg Lynch, Hamilton Journal-News

The City of HamiltonB U T L E R C O U N T Y O H I OEconomic Development

Economic Development 345 High Street

Hamilton, OH 45011

OFFICE TELEPHONE: (513) 785-7070 TOLL FREE: (800) 755 6403 FAX NUMBER: (513) 785 7067 GENERAL INQUIRIES: econdev@hamilton-oh.govBUSINESS DEVELOPMENT TEAM: startmeup@hamilton-oh.gov

STAFF

Jody Gunderson, Director of Economic Development, gundersoj@hamilton-oh.govStacey Dietrich-Dudas, Economic Development Specialist, dietrichs@hamilton-oh.govSean Pederson, Special Projects Coordinator, pedersons@hamilton-oh.govDawn Reed, Office Manager, reeddl@hamilton-oh.govAntony Seppi, Business Development Specialist, seppia@hamilton-oh.govLiz Colombo, Earl Brush Fellow, colombol@hamilton-oh.gov