Credits, Refunds, Incentives More Reasons to Locate in Urban Florida » Business Equipment Sales Tax Refund For sales taxes paid on the purchase of certain business property used exclusively in an Enterprise Zone for at least three years. » Building Materials Sales Tax Refund Applies to sales taxes paid on the purchase of building materials used to rehabilitate real property located in an Enterprise Zone. » Property Tax Credit, Corporate Income Tax Credit against Florida corporate income tax equal to 96% of ad valorem taxes paid on the new or improved property. » Sales Tax Exemption for Electrical Energy A 50% sales tax exemption on the purchase of electrical energy, if the municipality has reduced the municipal utility tax by at least 50%. » Community Contribution Tax Credit 50% credit on Florida corporate income tax, insurance premium tax or sales tax refund for donations made to local community development projects.

Gemstone-quality diamonds, in their raw state, typically aren’t much to look at. In fact, it takes more than a little imagination to see the beauty that is just waiting to burst forth with the right cut and polish.

Urban properties that are showing signs of abandonment, economic decline or contamination are a lot like diamonds in the rough. Since 1981, Florida’s Urban Advantages programs, along with local community support and federal initiatives, have helped thousands of companies discover the hidden sparkle of diamonds-in-the-rough properties and circumstances.

For More Information

To learn more about Florida’s many incentive programs, visit www.eflorida.com.

BROWNFIELDS

Emerging Successes

Consider properties designated as Brownfields, for example. The potential of these abandoned or underused commercial and industrial sites can easily be overlooked. But Taylor, Bean & Whitaker (TB&W) was willing to take a chance. The 6.5-acre property that is now the global headquarters site for one of the country’s leading wholesale mortgage lenders is located in Ocala’s historic Magnolia District.

Brownfield Incentives: According to Enterprise Florida, the state’s private-public partnership for economic development, Brownfields in Florida are some of the easiest such properties in the nation to remediate because the severity of environmental degradation/ contamination here is much lower than in many other U.S. states. Businesses that elect to clean up and redevelop existing Brownfield sites are provided with generous financial incentives, regulatory benefits, technical assistance and liability protection. A few of the advantages include: » $2,500 Job Bonus Refund for each new job created by an eligible business » Highly attractive business locations with existing infrastructure » Voluntary cleanup tax credits » Cleanup liability protection » Low-interest loans for assessment and cleanup » Increased State Loan Guarantee which can improve lending opportunities » Expedited permitting And since many Brownfield properties are located within Urban Enterprise Zones, additional financial incentives may be available.

Vacant for more than a decade, the property was much more than an eyesore. Its windowless buildings were piled with broken-down machinery, rusting meat hooks and miles of ancient piping draped with deteriorating asbestos insulation.

Outside, 55-gallon drums of unidentified liquid waste sat near rusting above-ground storage tanks, threatening utter contamination. The location was a magnet for vagrants and repeated criminal activity.

In spite of its obvious problems, the Magnolia District property did have two important things going for it — its ideal location near downtown Ocala and its generous size, both of which were appealing to TB&W, a successful company already sited on an adjacent lot and looking to expand. Location aside, the property’s deplorable condition didn’t exactly lend itself to the $20-million investment TB&W was prepared to make.

But then, with the property owner’s consent, the site was designated a Brownfield area, and everything changed. The City of Ocala worked in concert with the Ocala/Marion County Economic Development Corporation (EDC), Enterprise Florida and the Marion County Board of County Commissioners to create what would become an amazing opportunity — an offer that TB&W simply couldn’t refuse.

TB&W President Lee Farkas looks back on the process that led his company to locate on the Brownfield site.

“In all honesty, I can’t tell you a lot about the process, other than the results of a beautiful building emerging from a very unattractive location,” he says candidly. “I know there was a great deal of work behind the scenes for our benefit ... I guess that says a lot about the people working on it. The city basically gave us the property, and the EDC brought the state in to do all they had to do to get it cleaned up and ready to build. It [the process] was so seamless that I didn’t have to get too involved. It doesn’t get much better than that!”

Today, TB&W’s new global headquarters is a downtown treasure, and community leaders encourage other companies to take a look at additional Brownfield properties available in Ocala and Marion County.

Taylor, Bean & Whitaker’s new corporate headquarters is the diamond that emerged from a Brownfield site in Ocala where broken-down machinery and rusty storage tanks had been left behind.

ENTERPRISE ZONES

A Dream Comes True

When Kavita Kamlani first saw the site her husband Sham had picked out for their South Florida restaurant, she thought he’d lost his mind.

“Oh, it was horrible,” she says. “So much dirt, so many bugs. And the smell — it was just awful.”

The Kamlanis had been looking forward to their move from New York to Miami, where they would be near family and finally realize their dream of opening a very special Indian restaurant. But what Kavita saw at the location her husband was suggesting looked more like a nightmare than a sweet dream to her.

What Sham saw, on the other hand, was potential. “I liked the location and I could see beyond the mess. I knew this could be the place.”

A short time later, at a Miami-Dade County Chamber of Commerce function, Sham overheard a conversation about tax incentives available to companies that choose to locate in Urban Enterprise Zones. Sham started asking questions. Before long, he realized that the site he’d chosen in a section of South Beach that had yet to be renovated might make his restaurant eligible for some financial rewards.

“Since we’re in an Enterprise Zone, we’re eligible for a reduction on our state sales tax for employing people who live in the area,” Sham explains. “That’s been a great assistance to get us up and running.”

The first two years for any business, especially a restaurant, he notes, can be challenging, and it’s not unusual to operate at a loss as you struggle to get off the ground. “The Enterprise Zone benefit made the difference in our operating in the hole versus breaking even during the first months of operation. This one benefit saves me around $6,000 each month.”

The Kamlanis gave their South Beach restaurant an interesting name. They call it “Ishq” (pronounced: ih-shk), which is the Indian word for passionate love. They chose that name because they say it describes their own relationship so well. More than 40 years ago, Kavita and Sham began their life together in a marriage arranged by their parents. Through the years, as they built their family and their businesses, including this latest one in Miami, the Kamlanis say they’ve learned a precious lesson: A situation might not initially be what you think you want, but, with hard work and a team spirit, something beautiful — Ishq — can result.

By siting their restaurant “Ishq” in an Enterprise Zone and employing people from the neighborhood, Sham and Kavita Kamlani became eligible for sales tax credits.

Beneath the Rubble

A combination of Brownfield and Urban Enterprise Zone incentives helped Jungle Island owner Bern Levine transform a rundown property into a tropical paradise.

When it came time to expand one of Miami-Dade’s oldest attractions — Parrot Jungle — owner Bern Levine thought he’d found the perfect spot.

The property, on Watson Island just off the MacArthur Causeway between Miami and South Beach, had great visibility. And more than 120,000 vehicles crossed the causeway every day. What could be a better location for an entertainment venue?

There was just one problem — and it was a big one. The site was a mess. Vagrants had taken up what appeared to be permanent residence on Watson Island and, for years, people had been dumping their garbage in the very spot Parrot Jungle wanted to go. On the plus side, Watson Island had been designated as a Brownfield site, an Enterprise Zone and a federal Empowerment Zone. By locating on the island and tapping into a large workforce of people in the area in need of good, steady jobs, Parrot Jungle would be eligible for a host of important tax credits. It’s hard to turn down those kinds of incentives; Levine made the move.

Today, when you visit the attraction — now called “Jungle Island” — it’s hard to visualize what the property used to look like. Vagrants no longer live here and the piles of garbage are gone. In their place, a tree-canopied attraction, surrounded by lush tropical vegetation, welcomes day visitors and often hosts parties and other events for the “glitterati” — high-profile politicians, show business celebrities and sports stars. Its banquet facilities cater to “regular people,” too, at corporate retreats, conferences, weddings, family reunions and other occasions. And Jungle Island has become a popular destination for families, as well as for school children who come to meet the parrots that gave the attraction its original name, plus dozens of other birds, mammals, primates, reptiles and “creepy-crawly” critters.

Jungle Island has more than 550 employees and a weekly payroll of more than $175,000. It also generates additional business for the area’s hotels and restaurants, which supports even more jobs.

Bern Levine applauds government leaders for developing the economic incentives that helped him relocate to a site he might otherwise have passed up.

“The state of Florida and Miami-Dade County have been marvelous. These incentives allow businesses to come in and be successful from the beginning and have a greater impact for good on the communities they serve. Anyone looking to locate or expand a business should get a map of the Enterprise Zones and start there to check for locations,” he urges.