No, my problem is with the abatements. I videotape the Hoboken race last week. Both candidates said Judy Tripodi has started the reval process in Hoboken which means JC is not far behind. I lived through the last reval. The company which the city hired for reval based their numbers on new development (which was tax abated). My 1988 taxes increased to $16,000 from $3,000. Then we were on a calendar year, and we had to pay one and one half years over 12 months. The tax abated properties did not go down, in fact, their value rose. I saw people who purchased homes for $350,000, lose equity. After reval, the banks sold these homes for $250,000 or less. The city interferes with the free market when one groups receives a tax haven, and another group have to pay. Besides, according to the news, we are entering a recovery.
Yvonne

This building is almost in the water.Someone today said "well what if they go belly up?"
Than the next guy will buy it from the bank at a steep discount and be able to make a profit.Its the way the world works.


It kills me that we bail people out for their own foolishness.

Quote:

Fulop has never been more right.

This is blood-boiling stuff.

Of course they've lowered the prices.

Tell them people will buy the apartments if they lower the prices. Why should the PILOTS be reduced?

Yvonne, based on the examples you cite, it sounds like your real issue should be with lying politicians rather than PILOTs and abatements.

I love the comment " the city will get more from abatements in the final decade of the extended contract than it would from conventional taxes." Let's look at history-when Cucci was in office, he gave a 15 year abatement to the Cali building on Grove Street. The last five years of the abatement calls for more money for the city. McCann comes into office, he changes the last five years agreement and the city loses those extra dollars. McCann also changed the agreement on Merrill Lynch. He shorten to agreement from 2% to 1%. That change meant Merrill Lynch didn't pay pilots for years. The city said they "overpaid." The developer is making a statement they know will never happened. As a small homeowner, I want a change in my taxes too. Oh, I forgot I don't make campaign contributions.
Yvonne

Tuesday, June 02, 2009
By AMY SARA CLARK
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER
Claiming slow sales, the developer of a luxury condo tower on the Jersey City waterfront is asking to revise its PILOT agreement with the city.

"The developer is really losing his shirt," said James C. McCann, an attorney for the Fisher Development Associates, the developer of Crystal Pointe. "This is a question of survival or failure."

According to McCann, who came to last night's City Council caucus to defend the request, only 24 of the 42-story tower's eventual 269 condos have sold since going on the market a few months ago. The building is located at 2 Second St.

Fisher is asking to extend the length of the PILOT, or Payments in Lieu of Taxes, agreement from 20 to 30 years and reduce the percentage of annual gross revenue paid from 16 to 10 percent for the first five years, with 12 percent payments for the next five years, and 16 percent payments for the final 20 years.

Jersey City's Tax Abatement Committee recommended giving approval, despite a memo arguing against the change from Al Cameron, deputy director of the city's Department of Housing, Economic Development and Commerce.

Cameron estimates the deal could cost the city almost $20 million over the next 30 years, but McCann argued that the city will get more from abatements in the final decade of the extended contract than it would from conventional taxes

Councilman Steve Fulop argued against allowing the change, saying that if the break is granted to this building, every other developer in the city would soon be asking for a revised deal.

He added that if the city is going to start granting better tax rates due to slow sales, "why shouldn't all homeowners trying to sell get the same deal? There are nearly 2,000 apartments for sale in Jersey City. To me there is no difference between (Crystal Pointe) and the person who is looking to sell on Mercer Street and is struggling to sell because of high taxes."

The ordinance will be introduced at tomorrow night's City Council meeting.