Belleville Council Still Mulling Terry Street PILOT Agreement

BELLEVILLE, NJ — The Belleville Township Council pushed back a 2nd hearing on a possible Payment In Lieu of Taxes (PILOT) agreement with developer Terry Street Urban Renewal during its Tuesday meeting.

The PILOT for Terry Street Urban Renewal is for a proposed 115-unit apartment building to be located at 91 Terry Street and 371 Cortland Street. The financial agreement would allow the developer to pay the municipality $3.48 million over 14 years instead of the standard municipal tax rate, NorthJersey.com reported.

Belleville council members had granted the agreement initial approval during their Dec. 19 meeting. The council will resume discussion on the possible PILOT at its meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 14.

PILOT agreements – also known as municipal tax abatements – are deals that enables a developer to switch their standard tax payments for a property with a fixed, yearly payment to the municipality.

Some municipal officials have called PILOT agreements useful tools to attract development to distressed or blighted areas of town. But their use has drawn criticism from opponents, some who caution that the deals can enable a big developer to skip out on paying their fair portion of property taxes.

Learn more about PILOT agreements here.

Following Tuesday’s meeting, Mayor Raymond Kimble told the Belleville Times that despite the PILOT including a clause that would reserve three units in the building for “municipal employees,” he supported the agreement as written.

“We’re not getting the full taxes that we should be getting for that property,” Kimble reportedly said.

Watch a video of the Jan. 24 meeting below, via Essex Watch.

The Terry Street PILOT has seen opposition from local activist groups such as Essex Watch, which has posted several tongue-in-cheek criticisms of the proposed deal.

Photo: YouTube screenshot

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