Virtual Town Hall On Amazon Town Meeting Article Tuesday

NORTH ANDOVER, MA — Town officials and an Amazon representative will answer questions about the proposed tax incentive agreement at a virtual town hall, Tuesday, ahead of the town vote on the deal at the annual town meeting, June 16.

The proposed deal includes both a tax increment financing (TIF) deal and a community partnership agreement, as part of the town's effort to lure Amazon to build a distribution center at 1600 Osgood Street.

The virtual town hall on the meeting is Tuesday at 4 p.m, broadcast on North Andover GovCAM, on Verizon channel 26, Comcast/Xfinity channel 8, or northandovercam.org.

Town Manager Melissa Murphy-Rodrigues, Community and Economic Development Director Andrew Shapiro and an Amazon representative will answer questions.

Residents can send questions to amazontif@northandoverma.gov or call in to 978-681-0184.

Under the TIF, Amazon and Hillwood Enterprises would receive up to $27 million in real estate tax relief over ten years, in exchange for developing 1600 Osgood Street and the community partnership.

The Community Partnership Agreement includes $9 million in funding for projects including roadway improvements, the sewer line on Route 126 and STEM funding for the school district.
The town would still receive over $18 million in net new tax revenue over the 10 year period.

Selectmen voted five to zero in favor of the partnership in May, saying the Amazon development could help the town's businesses recover from the coronavirus-related economic downturn.

The full TIF and Community Partnership Agreement are available here. More information on the TIF is available at amazontif.northandoverma.gov.

Christopher Huffaker can be reached at 412-265-8353 or chris.huffaker@patch.com.

Correction: An earlier version of this story gave an incorrect day for town meeting.