MOUNT VERNON — Pending federal approval, local officials may soon have another tool to attract long-term investment in Mount Vernon’s north end.
Buried in the tax reform bill President Trump signed last December is a provision that creates opportunity zones in census tracts that meet certain low-income and poverty-level thresholds. Jeff Harris, president of the Area Development Foundation of Knox County, said the idea is to encourage development in these areas by giving beneficial tax treatment to investors who invest in these census tracts.
“So for an investor who is selling property, if they want to delay paying taxes on the property, they can invest that money in these census tracts,” he explained. “It’s a vehicle just like other investment vehicles, but now it’s directed into specific census tracts.”
Ohio was allocated 320 census tracts to nominate as opportunity zones. The census tracts are defined by the U.S. Census Bureau.
“We combed through at the county to see which census tracts fit the criteria. We had four,” said Harris.
Statewide, 890 were submitted, including the four from Knox County. On Wednesday, Harris received word that the census tract that includes the north end of Mount Vernon, the entire Siemens campus, and the former American National Can property was nominated by the state of Ohio for inclusion in the program. Harris said three things made the nomination attractive to the state:
- Pre-existing investment in the area
- Jobs Ohio involvement with the Siemens campus
- Some development on the horizon
The U.S. Treasury Department has 30 days to certify the census tracts nominated. Harris said that if the Mount Vernon tract receives federal approval as an opportunity zone, it makes it that much easier to market the Siemens and ANC properties.
“This provides us with one extra arrow in the quiver as we go out and try to aggressively market the Siemens and American National Can sites,” he said. “Now we can put another incentive out there. To certain large investors who have a lot of money to play with, it will be pretty enticing.”
Investors have until Dec. 31, 2028, to take advantage of the deferred, and in some instances the permanent exclusion of, capital gains tax incentives offered through opportunity zones. Harris said that he would not be surprised if venture capitalists and companies express interest.
“They say nature abhors a vacuum,” he said. “Any time you have a program set up like this you have people and companies getting involved.”
The other census tracts Harris submitted are in the Knox Lake, Danville, and Martinsburg/Bladensburg areas.
