The list of potential beneficiaries includes food producers, manufacturers and renewable energy companies.
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View full sizeA near-empty office building at 800 Superior Ave. in downtown Cleveland is being renovated by AmTrust Financial Services Inc., which plans to bring 1,000 jobs there. The project might benefit from Ohio New Markets Tax Credits awarded to a Cleveland fund. The state announced $10 million in tax credits Monday.CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Three Northeast Ohio investment funds won a combined $4 million in state tax credits meant to fill financing gaps for growing businesses in low-income areas.
Community development entities tied to the Greater Cleveland Partnership and port authorities in Cuyahoga and Summit counties could channel those credits into corporate expansions and job creation.
The list of potential beneficiaries includes food producers, manufacturers and renewable energy companies.
The state announced $10 million in Ohio New Markets Tax Credits on Monday. Launched in 2010, the tax-credit program plays off a federal initiative that kept some real estate projects alive during the recession. Ohio focuses on business expansions and limits investments to owner-occupied properties.
Funds known as community development entities use the credits to attract banks and insurance companies to projects in stressed areas. The lenders get tax benefits in exchange for providing low-cost financing.
The Ohio Department of Development expects the $10 million in credits to support at least $25.6 million worth of investments in the state.
The local winners are:
• Cleveland New Markets Investment Fund II, LLC, which will receive $2 million. Controlled by Cleveland Development Advisors, an affiliate of the Greater Cleveland Partnership, the fund hopes to allocate some of its credits to the AmTrust Financial Services Inc. project at 800 Superior Ave. in downtown Cleveland. The New York-based insurer acquired an office building and is renovating it to house 1,000 workers, including employees of its GMAC Insurance subsidiary.
• Development Fund of the Western Reserve, which will receive $1 million in credits. The fund is linked to the Development Finance Authority of Summit County, a port authority.
• Northeast Ohio Development Fund, LLC, which also will receive $1 million. Controlled by the Cleveland-Cuyahoga County Port Authority, the fund is looking at 10 potential projects.
"The goal would be to have it out by the end of the year," Brent Leslie, the Cleveland port's chief financial officer, said of the tax-credit allocation. "We have $5 million in federal New Markets Tax Credits remaining, and they need to be coupled together."
Two statewide funds, which won a combined $3 million in credits, also might consider Northeast Ohio investments.
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