by Brennan Duffy, CEcD, Executive Director of the Rutland Redevelopment Authority Continued momentum on several fronts continues in Rutland City. On the economic development side plans for several significant investments were announced in the summer of 2018. These included two national restaurant chains pursuing business locations on busy North Main Street/ Rte. 7. Also announced was a plan to redevelop the Berwick Site, a currently vacant and underutilized location in the Center of downtown Rutland, with a 100 room hotel, restaurant, and meeting space. Financing for this project is currently being defined by the prospective developer, DEW Construction Corporation, with a decision expected in early 2019.
Opportunity Zone / New Markets Tax Credit Zone map of Rutland
The business climate in the City’s designated downtown area remains strong with the Downtown Rutland Partnership announcing over a dozen new businesses opening over the past year. The downtown also saw a major redevelopment initiative completed in August with the official opening of the Center Street Marketplace Park. The opening capped a project that had been ongoing for almost a decade as the City strove to redesign and construct a vibrant green-space and community gathering location in the center of downtown. The successful completion of this project has also spurred significant private investment with the renovation of the historic Strand Theater building to provide Rutland’s popular Roots the Restaurant a larger location. The new location will have its entrance located within the Center Street Marketplace Park itself and will provide outdoor seating in the park during the warmer months.
The City’s multi-phase Gateway Improvement Plan recently saw the completion of another segment. Significant public investment has been made along the City’s downtown gateway corridors with new pedestrian friendly crosswalks and green space being created along Strongs Avenue and Merchants Row to allow enhanced pedestrian access and safety. The new “bump-out” crosswalks have proven popular and effective. A final phase of this downtown gateway enhancement is currently in the planning and design stages along upper West Street with construction expected to begin in the spring of 2019.
The Rutland City housing market also continues to see positive trends with improvement in both sales volume and residential home prices over the past year. The City’s Northwest Neighborhood Revitalization initiative, a collaboration of the City, Rutland Redevelopment Authority, and Neighborworks of Western Vermont is nearing completion. Neighborworks is currently completing renovations on the last of eleven vacant homes that were purchased and renovated or demolished as part of a multi-year effort to revitalize housing and enhance community engagement. The City has also recently approved its second applicant for residential tax stabilization. This innovative incentive program allows municipal property taxes to be capped for up to five years on the value of improvements made to a currently vacant and blighted residential property.
2018 also saw three of Rutland’s four U.S. Census Tracts designated as “Opportunity Zones” by the federal government (see attached map). This designation allows projects, either new business expansion or associated real estate or personal property investment, located within the qualifying areas, to realize equity investment. The program allows significant economic benefit (through preferential tax treatment) to investors who re-invest their capital gains in opportunity zone projects. The Opportunity Zone census tracts also coincide with another federal economic development program, New Market Tax Credits, which can also provide equity investment to qualifying projects located within most of Rutland City.
It is believed that the new Opportunity Zone program, coupled with other existing federal and state programs and the City’s innovative local incentives, will continue to help stimulate capital investments in future Rutland City projects. For more information about utilizing economic development incentives and/or capitalizing on Opportunity Zone benefits as an investor please contact Brennan Duffy at the Rutland Redevelopment Authority www.rutlandvtbusiness.com .