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That’s where the Macon Bright Program could play a pivotal role in their redevelopment. The Macon-Bibb County Industrial Authority’s program would try to entice developers by offering a property tax freeze as an incentive.
The program was coined “Bright” because it represents the turnaround that could happen to some of the area’s blighted buildings.
There has been some early positive feedback from some developers and realtors about the proposed program, Industrial Authority Executive Director Stephen Adams said.
“We’re attempting to reduce risk on behalf of the developers to go in and make an investment that they maybe were previously considering but the risk was just to high,” he said. “This effort is really to held reduce risk and the beauty of this is that it’s no loss of revenue to the taxing entities.”
Under the program, property taxes could be frozen for up to five years while a developer renovates or re-purposes that property. The Industrial Authority would determine which properties would be eligible for Macon Bright.
“We’re not trying to tell the developers when they come what to create from their building,” said Robby Fountain, chairman of the Industrial Authority. “It could be another big box or it could be a manufacturer. It could be anything. The sky’s the limit.
“We don’t know if this program can fix and address all the issues,” Fountain added. “We’re going to test the waters and see if there’s any activity or appetite from developers.”
The Authority would issue bonds to cover up to $25 million in projects. The bonds would not involve any cash being borrowed or loaned for the redevelopment. Instead, it would allow the authority to have the title to properties so that the property tax freeze could be implemented.
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