Housing & Development - Laney Walker Enterprise Zone Tax Abatement Program

Housing Development Augusta
Housing & Community Development

Laney Walker Enterprise Zone Tax Abatement Program

What is an Enterprise Zone?

An enterprise zone is a designated geographic area within a city or county, which is suffering from disinvestment, underdevelopment, and general economic distress. In an effort to encourage revitalization in these distressed communities, the Georgia General Assembly enacted the "Enterprise Zone Employment Act of 1997", to induce the investment of private resources in productive business enterprises located in the designated area.

What is the Zone Designation?

Augusta-Richmond County created an ordinance pursuant to the "Georgia Enterprise Zone Employment Act of 1997" to provide tax incentives and other incentives establishing the "Laney Walker Enterprise Zone" to include business or service enterprises and housing enterprise zones. The Laney Walker Enterprise Zone shall continue for a period of ten (10) years unless redesignated as an EZ for an additional period.

Who is eligible?

Pursuant to state law, the following types of businesses and projects are eligible for the incentives offered:

Manufacturing
Warehousing and distribution
Processing
Telecommunications
Tourism
Research and development
New Residential Construction
Residential Rehabilitation
Finance, Insurance and Real Estate

In order to be eligible for incentives, eligible businesses must increase employment by five or more new full time job equivalents and maintain the jobs for the duration of the tax exemption period (ten years). Whenever possible, at least 10% of the new employees filling the jobs that satisfy the job creation requirement should be low or moderate income individuals. To qualify for tax exemption for the housing enterprise zone, to include new residential construction, residential rehabilitation, or other rehabilitation of an existing structure, the value of the improvement must exceed the value of the land by a ratio of five to one.

What are the Incentives?

Qualifying businesses and residential projects are exempt from state, county, and municipal ad valorem taxes, except the portion of taxes that are collected for the school district, in accordance with the following schedule:

Years 1 – 5 100%
Years 6 – 7 80%
Year 8 60%
Year 9 40%
Year 10 20%
Year 11 0%

Other Incentives

Other incentives that may be granted will be negotiated on a case-by-case basis by ARC Commission through Housing and Economic Development and could include exemption from any or all of the following:

Building Permit Fees
Sign Permit Fees
Business License Administrative Fee
Rezoning Fees
Engineering Fees
Other local fees authorized by the ARC Commission, as applicable.

Additional Considerations

The EZ Employment Act of 1997, as amended empowers the local governing body to make a case by case determination of the eligibility of each business for EZ tax abatements and other incentives. Among the considerations may be the following:

Locating in a vacant building
Demolishing a pre-existing or abandoned structure
Assembling four or more tracts of land for one project
Creating jobs above the state threshold
Creating jobs for residents of the EZ and surrounding area
Incorporating aesthetic enhancements (i.e.: landscaping, type of façade materials used, exclusion of billboards)

Where is the Laney Walker Enterprise Zone?

Beginning at the intersection of 12th Street and Walton Way; SE to the intersection of 7th Street; SW to the intersection of Laney Walker Boulevard; NW to the intersection of James Brown Boulevard (9th Street); SW to the intersection of Wrightsboro Road; NW to the intersection of Augusta Avenue; to the intersection of Laney Walker Boulevard; NW to the intersection of R. A . Dent Boulevard; NE to the intersection of D’Antignac Street; to the intersection of 12th Street NE to the point of beginning.

For more information contact Henry Holt
(706) 821-1797