The Baltimore Development Corp. has put $30 million in tax-exempt development money up for grabs.
The call for interested private sector parties to submit funding proposals is part of the $15 billion in Recovery Zone Facility Bonds created under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Tax Act of 2009 (a.k.a. the Stimulus Plan). The tax-exempt bonds were earmarked by the Feds for areas of the country with high poverty or unemployment rates. The moneys may be used for new construction, expansion, or substantial rehabilitation of office buildings, hotels, business parks, industrial and manufacturing facilities, retail, restaurants, certain qualifying residential projects, mixed-use projects and other types of private commercial uses.
Colin Tarbert, BDC Senior Economic Development Officer, says the bonds must be issued for projects by Dec. 31, 2010 -- the program's end date -- and that BDC as a result will prioritize "projects that are sort of ready to go, that have evolved to the point where [the developers] are looking to be financed and haven't been able to close on that financing."
The BDC is hoping the funding "will stimulate the lending field. At the end of the day, we're looking for projects that will create new city jobs and new city taxes," Tarbert says. Interest in the bonds from the private sector has already been strong, he adds.
The Notice of Funding Availability and Request for Proposals can be downloaded from BDC's website. The deadline for submission of proposals is 4 p.m. on Sept. 1. BDC will hold a pre-proposal conference at its offices (36 S. Charles Street, 16th floor) on Aug. 12 at 10 a.m.
Source: Colin Tarbert, BRDC
Writer: Lucy Ament