Toledo City Council to vote on property tax incentives for Olympic Real Estate Group

By Tim Schneider, Toledo Regional Chamber of Commerce

At its regular meeting on Tuesday, May 5 at 4:00 p.m., Toledo City Council is expected to vote on Ordinance 159-20 which would approve a Community Reinvestment Area property tax exemption for Olympic Real Estate Group, LLC for remodeling of a building at 5355 Southwyck Boulevard for a new accounting office. The exemption would be 100 percent for 12 years for taxes that would otherwise be generated due to the increase in the assessed valuation. The estimated investment cost of the project is $519,582. The city sold the property to the company in 2018 which redeveloped it in order to consolidate operations for its sister businesses Financial Express and Payroll Express LLC. Toledo Public Schools has agreed to a compensation agreement in lieu of expected tax revenue.

Council is also expected to vote on the following:

• Ordinance 155-20 which would transfer $750,000 from the Capital Improvement Program fund to the General Fund to avoid cutting the 2020 police class from this year’s budget. The funding is currently budgeted for the District Improvement Program which funds various capital projects identified within council districts.
• Ordinance 162-20 which would authorize accepting a $25,000 grant from the Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority to support development of a strategic framework to advise the creation of a new comprehensive land use plan. Council earlier this year approved $70,000 for the framework and authorized the Lucas County Land Bank to act as project administrator. Other participants in the project include Lucas County, The University of Toledo, Toledo Public Schools, Toledo Lucas County Public Library, Toledo Zoo & Aquarium, Metroparks Toledo, TMACOG, and LISC.
• Three ordinances which would approve expenditures for sewer infrastructure. Ordinance 144-20 would accept a $148,000 grant and a $148,000 loan from the Ohio Public Works Commission, and approve $304,000 to cover local share, for lining of sanitary sewers. Ordinance 146-20 would approve $3 million to address structural problems in sections of the city’s sewer system. Ordinance 158-20 would approve $1 million for replacement of inlet gates for settling tanks and repair of gate hardware and valve controls at the Bay View Water Reclamation Plant.

Council is expected to give first reading to Ordinance 160-20 which would approve a five-year contract for up to $505,000 annually with Woodlawn Cemetery and Arboretum for the operation of the five city-owned cemeteries. The contract would be based on a July 1, 2020 start date and include an option for a five-year renewal.

The public may watch the Council meeting online by visiting https://toledo.legistar.com and scrolling down to the May 5 city council meeting and clicking on “in progress.”

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​​Tim Schneider
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​As Manager for Local Government Advocacy, Tim Schneider advocates for local policies and laws that safeguard and foster a pro-business environment in the Toledo Region. Tim has more than 10 years of legislative and public policy experience with the local, state and federal levels of government.