IDA set to vote on iStar tax break

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The Nassau County Industrial Development Agency is set to vote July 28 on a 20-year, $109 million tax break for a developer seeking to build two luxury apartment buildings on the long-vacant Superblock property.

The date was set earlier this month and the meeting will be held at 1550 Franklin Ave., Suite 235 at 5 p.m.

The agency will approve or deny plans by Manhattan-based iStar Financial to build its $336 million project that features two 15-story towers overlooking the Long Beach boardwalk.

The Nassau IDA canceled its previous hearing in Mineola in May, after the agency said that it was “inundated with calls and emails” that raised questions about an economic impact study of the project released that month, according to Newsday.

Developers have said that a payment in lieu of taxes, or PILOT, program, is necessary to build upon the 6-acre lot that has remained vacant for three decades.

According to a report by Camoin Associates, the consulting firm commissioned to conduct the economic analysis by the IDA, the city would see an average annual net benefit of just $12,239 over the next 20 years, though the study acknowledged a $4.1 million community host benefit agreement the city reached with iStar, a payment not included in the analysis.

A number of residents say that Long Beach would lose out on the deal, and many are expected to attend the hearing to voice opposition.