MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION OF THE TOWNSHIP OF WANTAGE, HELD AT THE WANTAGE TOWNSHIP MUNICIPAL BUILDING, 888 STATE HIGHWAY 23, WANTAGE, N.J. ON MARCH 1, 2005.

Ms. Lettieri called the meeting to order, and requested Mr. Doherty to call the roll. Upon roll call, the following members of were present: Pat Lettieri, Andrew Kattermann, Tom Zummo, and Lori Day. Absent: Al Shpiruk. Also present: Township Clerk Jim Doherty.

General discussion took place regarding the procedures for reviewing and giving consideration to applications for tax exemption in Wantage Township.

General review took place regarding an application filed by Emil Conforth for consideration of tax exemption, on a project located in the neighborhood commercial zone consisting of 3.1 acres, identified as 197 County Route 565.

Mr. Conforth, in his written application to the board, stated that the project consisted of a “home with integral office space”, with slightly less than one third of the total finished space (580 square feet) being the portion to be used for commercial purposes, and therefore being the area within which a tax exemption is sought.

General discussion took place with respect to whether or not this application meets the requirements of the Wantage Township Tax Exemption Ordinance for endorsement of approval, and whether or not the application fulfills the intention of having a tax exemption ordinance, specifically, the furtherance of economic development in the community.

After due consideration, Mr. Kattermann moved to forward this application to the attention of the Mayor and Committee with the endorsement of the Economic Development Commission. Ms. Day seconded the motion. Upon roll call, Ayes: Day, Lettieri, Kattermann Nays: Zummo Absent: Shpiruk Abstain: None

Mr. Zummo presented for discussion, the possibility that the Tax Exemption Ordinance, as it currently exists, has failed to produce the intended level of economic development within Wantage Township; that it has not been an incentive to produce increased commercial development of the community; and that, in its current form, the ordinance serves only to provide tax breaks for individuals and corporations who would have proceeded with the improvements and developments regardless of whether or not the tax exemption incentive had been offered.

Mr. Zummo pointed out that the application by Conforth indicated that the project would not be creating any jobs within the next two years, and therefore did little, if anything, to promote the economic development of Wantage.

Ms. Day stated her belief that the small number of applications for tax exemption over the past five years, and the nature of the applications, indicate a legitimate concern that the scenario presented by Mr. Zummo is correct.

All members present expressed concern that, with the application of Conforth this evening, the likelihood exists that the Township may see increased applications for tax exemptions on home based businesses within the eligible zones of the Township, and that this would create increased bookkeeping for the Township, decreased tax revenues, and the likelihood of little or no net value in terms of economic development.

Mr. Kattermann agreed with the concerns raised, but presented for consideration the possibility that even without creating any jobs itself, applications for improvement of blighted areas - especially along the entrance approaches to the Township, - may entice other commercial enterprises to come into the Township. Mr. Kattermann expressed the possibility for consideration that there is an intangible value to the tax exemption ordinance by promoting the general rehabilitation and development of areas that would otherwise provide an unattractive view of the Township to future economic enterprises.

All members present agreed that this was possible, but expressed concern that there was no tangible means by which to measure whether or not that theory was, in fact, working.

All members present also agreed that having the tax exemption process become an on-going review of home based businesses, seeking partial tax exemptions, would be contrary to the intended long term purpose of having the ordinance in place, and would call into question the value of having the tax exemption ordinance at all.

Mr. Zummo repeated his concern that the tax exemption ordinance as it is currently being applied, serves only to decrease the tax revenue being collected by the Township, without any offsetting long range economic value to the community.

Ms. Lettieri also brought up the concern that if the tax exemption ordinance is going to exist, its availability needs to be made known to the public so that all parties have a fair opportunity to make use of it, and so that commercial developers are indeed aware that this incentive exists while they are contemplating whether or not to develop their projects in Wantage.

Mr. Doherty agreed with Ms. Lettieri that this represents a fair point, but expressed concern that making this ordinance known to every applicant for a building permit or land use application would serve to perpetuate and increase the concern raised by Mr. Zummo, that the tax exemption ordinance may be serving no purpose other than to decrease tax revenue on projects that would otherwise have happened any way.

Mr. Doherty also stated that, while he has no authority to provide legal advice on the ordinance, he does have experience in two other communities that had the tax exemption ordinance in place, and it is his belief that there is very little latitude in the enabling statute enacted by the State Legislature with respect to the criteria that must be used in determining eligibility for tax exemptions. Mr. Doherty stated his understanding of the concerns being discussed, but expressed a belief that there may be very little room for changes to the local ordinance which would provide satisfactory redress.

After general discussion and consideration, the members of the commission requested that Mr. Doherty present the following recommendations to the Wantage Township governing body:

1. Request the Township Attorney advise whether or not it is possible to amend the Tax Exemption Ordinance in such a way that applications for tax exemption on home-based businesses are excluded from consideration under the ordinance
2. Requesting the Township Attorney to advise whether or not it is possible to amend the existing ordinance in any way that would serve to promote the long-term, intended goal of tangible economic development of the community
3. If neither of the above suggestions can be accomplished, then the governing body and the Economic Development Commission should have a joint work session later this year for the purpose of reviewing whether or not the Tax Exemption Ordinance of Wantage Township is serving a legitimate purpose on behalf of the Wantage community, or whether the ordinance should be rescinded.

There being no other items for the consideration of the commission at this time, Mr. Zummo moved to adjourn the meeting. The motion was seconded by Mr. Kattermann.

All members present voted in favor of the motion. Ms. Lettieri declared this meeting to be adjourned.

Respectfully submitted,______________________________
James R. Doherty, Clerk