Hanover Mall redevelopment article scheduled for June 19 Special Town Meeting

HANOVER, Mass. - May 10, 2017 - PRLog -- The Hanover Mall Management Team is urging Hanover residents to vote in favor of a TIF (Tax Increment Financing) article at the upcoming June 19^th Hanover Special Town Meeting, stating that approval of this TIF will pave the way for the new owners of the Hanover Mall to redevelop and revitalize the shopping center that has been part of the community since 1971.

PREP (PECO Real Estate Partners), the owners of the Hanover Mall, and their Hanover-based management team have been meeting with Hanover officials and community members to discuss the TIF proposal, which has been received favorably. They plan a series of additional informal community meetings between now and June 19.

Hanover Mall General Manager Ed Callahan terms it a "win-win," proposal, saying that this path forward is the best way to revitalize the Hanover Mall, the town's single largest taxpayer, as well as providing the community a stable tax payment over the next 15 years. "We have an owner willing to invest to build this into a first-class property," Callahan said.

Under the terms of the proposed TIF, PREP will commit to investing a minimum of $40 million in redeveloping the mall while maintaining the level of property tax payments annually based on its purchase price.

PREP has agreed to pay real estate taxes based on its purchase price of $39,500,000 prior to and during this construction period. In recent years, its assessed valuation has declined. The TIF agreement would stop that slide while allowing the owners the time to invest in improvements and attract new tenants.

"Should the mall continue to decline in assessed valuation, its tax payment to the community would decline further and residents would pay a higher percentage of property taxes than they currently do," said Callahan. The TIF stops the decline. The town knows the revenue it will receive annually, and the owners have the incentive to invest and develop."

What is a TIF?

The TIF (Tax Increment Financing), while new to Hanover, has been used over 2000 times in Massachusetts and all over the country. It is an economic tool used to promote redevelopment through public/private partnerships. It is a local real estate property tax exemption negotiated and executed between a host municipality (in this case the Town of Hanover) and a developer. As part of this agreement, the developer agrees to make significant private investment that increases the assessed value of the property above and beyond its base assessed value, and in turn receives an abatement on the additional value created for the term of the TIF. To summarize, the mall will pay the minimum property taxes based on $39,500,000. As the value is created during the redevelopment, the mall will pay the minimum property taxes plus any property taxes due to the increased value. The mall would then receive a rebate based on the TIF agreement on the increment created, not the minimum value.

In addition to the stabilized tax payments, benefits of the TIF include:

• Promotion of Private Investment – The TIF Agreement requires a minimum of $40,000,000 of additional investment into the redevelopment of the Hanover Mall ensuring a quality project over the life of the agreement
• Providing job creation: The redevelopment will provide full-time, part-time and construction jobs. Based on 2.5 jobs per 1,000sf of retail, over 700 jobs could be created
• Preference to Hanover residents: The TIF Agreement requires the developer to use its best efforts to hire residents of Hanover
• Potential increased tax revenues: Beyond the increase of the mall taxes there will be additional economic growth around the redevelopment, leading to new tax revenues and further stability

Callahan said, "This is a great opportunity for the town, and for us, to build a first-class operation that everyone will be proud of. Our new owners are committed to investing in this mall and this community and we believe this will yield many dividends for the town." He continued, "We urge Hanover residents to come out and support this initiative and help take this first step forward."

Anyone interested in learning more, please email hanovermallinfo@pecorep.com or call 781 826 7386 Ext 223.

Since 1971, the Hanover Mall has served the shopping needs of Hanover and the region. Hanover Mall supports a number of community activities and causes, and employs hundreds of local residents. Hanover Mall is the Town of Hanover's largest taxpayer.The mall is located at 1775 Washington Street, Route 53, Hanover, MA. To learn more about the Mall, please visit their Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/TheHanoverMall/.