Riverhead aquarium owners seek extension to lucrative tax-break deal
Downtown apartment developers also seek exemptions
17 comments below
Visitors make their way to Atlantis Marine World, whose owners are seeking to have its tax exemption extended another 10 years.
Summerwind, a 53-unit rental and retail complex proposed for Peconic Avenue, is also seeking the same 10-year property tax abatement.
The two projects could receive exemptions on mortgage recording tax and on sales tax on materials used in construction of the projects.
Atlantis has received a 100 percent property tax abatement on town, county, school and fire district taxes for 10 years under an agreement the town Industrial Development Agency made more than 10 years ago when the town was trying to lure Atlantis to downtown Riverhead.
The standard IDA property tax exemption for a nonindustrial project would start at 50 percent and decrease by five percent a year for 10 years, but Atlantis qualified for the full exemption because it is located in an economically distressed area, officials said.
That abatement expires at the end of this year, and Atlantis appeared before the IDA Monday seeking to extend those same abatements another decade.
"The original studies said we'd draw 600,000 to 900,000 people a year," he said. "We have not hit half of that yet."
Joe Petrocelli, another co-owner of the aquarium, said that while they originally envisioned the aquarium drawing people to downtown, "it became obvious that our guests came to our aquarium and then they went home."
Atlantis general manager Bryan DeLuca said the reason aquariums in places like Baltimore and Mystic, Conn., draw more than a million people per year is because they've created a destination for their downtowns, and visitors can go to other places after they visit the aquarium.
Mr. Bissett and Mr. Petrocelli said that the vacancy rate in downtown was about 30 percent when they opened the aquarium in 2000 and now hovers at 70 percent. They said that as the vacancies grew, it became harder and harder to draw people to the aquarium.
"This is a concern for us and a concern for the people financing this project," Mr. Bissett said. "We need the assistance of this board."
He said the prior exemptions allowed Atlantis to expand every year.
Atlantis still pays taxes to the sewer, parking, lighting, ambulance and business improvement taxing districts, and their tax bill this year came to $125,895, according to town records. Without the IDA exemption, the full tax bill on the aquarium would have been $502,594, according to tax receiver Maryann Heilbrunn.
However, Atlantis also makes a payment in lieu of taxes to the IDA based on the value of what was there before they built the hotel. That payment is around $30,000 per year and gets distributed to the town, county and school district.
Councilman Jim Wooten, the only speaker expressing an opinion on the proposed exemptions at Monday's hearing, said he would "give Jim Bissett the shirt off my back," but cautioned, "there has to come a time when abatements have to be weighed against public benefit."
Summerwind is also seeking a 10-year property tax abatement on town, school, county and fire district taxes, and like Atlantis, representatives claim in their application that "the project is considered to be extremely significant and vital to the economic health and well being of the Town of Riverhead, Suffolk County and the Long Island Region."
Summerwind, which would include affordable or "workforce" apartments on its top three floors and retail stores and restaurant on the ground floor, would also be located in what is considered an economically distressed area. And as such, it could qualify for the greater exemptions.
Developer Ray Dickhoff, who along with Marty Sendlewski and Riverhead Councilwoman-elect Jodi Giglio, is the applicant on Summerwind, said that several dormant and decaying buildings will be razed in order to build a four-story building
"The goal is to revitalize Main Street by providing affordable living space" and "adding much needed foot traffic," Mr. Dickhoff said.
tgannon@timesreview.com
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17 comments found
tax bresk : 2/10/2010
Lets not tax our commercial property owners and then try to pass school expansion on the backs of the residents oh yea and then charge our school kids to view the aquarium exhibits
: 1/25/2010
Oh yeah, give the guy with the 40,000 sq ft house in SOUTHOLD a tax break. @@
: 12/26/2009
the dormant and decaying structures that occupy the lands that summerwinds is planned for are dormant and decaying at the beheast of it's owners. it is the owners that have neglected their properties. it is the owners that now propose a project "vital" to downtown by bringing workforce housing with it's own stores underneth, built and subsidized by county and town monies with all the empire zoning benefits and a ten year tax exemption request for a private for profit entity owned by principles that now sit on the town board.
Atlantis has recieved already a ten year savings on the good faith of the town and should not recieve another. Summerwind is a private for profit project being built with county grant money.
Both should recieve the same tax breaks that the single family home owner in the Town of Riverhead receive, and no more
Until the town is fiscally responsible and has a balanced budget that shows a surplus, which will go to lower individual home owners tax burdens to the town - the requests for exemptions for projects like this should not be entertained, much less acted on..
no taxes : 12/25/2009
This is ludicrous.
: 11/29/2009
The People are watching
: 11/25/2009
NO TAX BREAKS. If any tax breaks are given, it better be to the residents and Constituants of the Town.
The authority to govern is only by the consent of the governed.
devastation benefits some : 11/22/2009
Business just loves to come to Riverhead with their hands out, telling us how bad our town is, how vacant our downtown is, how bad our schools are, etc., etc., and we just sit there and take it! And it's always and forever BUSINESS AS USUAL.
tax deal? why??? : 11/21/2009
Whenever I go to the acquarium, I'm confronted at every turn with more costs, and as a parent trying to take the kids on an educational, fun day, it's outrageous to be directed through the gift shop to exit the acquarium and have to say no, or to have to limit the kids to choosing only among the smallest toys there because the prices are ridiculous. There are rides, ice creams, fish feedings, food, parking and on and on, and the acquarium appears to be doing just fine. To boot, he's got a tax-exempt side of the business where he can write off all kinds of costs. Not blaming Mr. Bissett for being such a good businessman, but to come to the town for tax breaks when he makes a killing, does he think we're all stupid?
: 11/18/2009
When I frequent main street Riverhead I see a thriving aqarium. I also see members of the Bissett family acting liek they are above the law. Watch out for the Bissett kids water skiing in a 5 mph zone in the Peconic River and rude behavior in Jerry's. No more tax breaks!
: 11/18/2009
I can't believe the town would consider giving Bissett another tax break. He is making thousands in parking alone. The aqarium is doing just fine. Lets help out the small businesses!
Wake Up Riverhead! : 11/18/2009
You guys are believable. Here are two stories right on top of one another on how the "Average Joe" in this town is getting a tax hike and the "connected" may be getting a tax break and there are only 6 Comments! I don't want to hear any more complaining from the locals. You have a chance to voice views and you just sit there. You deserve what you get!
: 11/12/2009
and who is collecting all the sec. 8 rents and store and retail rents from Summerwind while the building costs are brunt by the taxpayers of suffolk and the town gives a ten year tax break ?
revitilize downtown? : 11/12/2009
Just what downtown needs, "workforce housing", otherwise known as a project, with it's own resturant and stores, payed for by county grants and getting ten year tax abatements from the town. Sure, that will be a big draw - can't wait to see the people getting off the LIE to come here.
extension to lucrative tax-break deal : 11/12/2009
retail stores and restaurant on the ground floor in Summerwind ? come on ! main street has too many vacant retail stores , what makes Summerwind special ? The people of the Town need the tax break !
Let the Party Begin : 11/12/2009
Nonsense is right! Disgraceful, everyone lining up at Town Hall for government handouts.
TRUSTED PUBLIC SERVANTS : 11/12/2009
We........shall see.
taxes : 11/12/2009
Oh yeah, that makes sense. Give these guys a tax break while everybody else gets a tax hike. Please stop the nonsense.
