The Portage City Council has finalized a tax abatement for a new industrial building.
Holladay Properties plans to build an 88,500-square-foot industrial flex building in the AmeriPlex development, next to Bass Pro Shops, near I-94. The council recently voted six-to-one to phase in property taxes over a 10-year period.
Holladay vice president of development Ryan Kelly says constructing buildings without specific tenants in mind is a necessary tactic in the current market, but one that's proven successful. "Right now we have no space," Kelly told council members. "We field calls and inquiries all the time. The market wants space now."
And he said tax abatements help, since the savings are passed along to tenants. "Having an abatement, it allows them anywhere from a dollar to $1.50 a square foot less on operating costs," Kelly added.
But Portage Sanitary Superintendent Tracie Marshall worried that some businesses can fall through the cracks, when it comes to making sure they follow the city's regulations. "There has been three industries that's moved in, and it's taken a year and a half for us to figure out they're there and that they discharge water," Marshall said.
Marshall noted that the city has specific rules, when it comes to pre-treating wastewater. She said she planned to meet with the developers to make sure tenants are given the right information.
