Today is the deadline for Delaware towns to submit their applications for a Downtown Development District application. The Town of Laurel actually submitted its application on May 24. You can view all the elements of the town’s application on this page.
If the town is successful, developers and others who invest in Laurel – including homeowners – will be eligible for state grants of 20 percent off their hard costs. For example, if a developer were to make a $1 million dollar investment in the proposed cottages along Broad Creek or in a brewpub, after a $25,000 deductible they would receive a $195,000 grant – plus incentives the town and Laurel Redevelopment Corporation are also adding to sweeten the pot and lower the risk.
This Delaware State Housing Authority presentation explains the district grant more thoroughly.
Laurel’s proposed Downtown Development District with The Ramble plan overlaid on it.
The state also will direct the first 30 percent of the annual historic tax credit allotment (usually $5 million a year) to Downtown Development Districts. So a business owner or a homeowner with property inside Laurel’s Downtown Development District will be eligible for both a grant and a state tax credit. The business owner also would be eligible for the federal historic tax credit.
It adds up: The town has agreed to waive the water and sewer impact fees, which total $7,000 per equivalent dwelling unit (EDU). So for the proposed 12 cottages within The Ramble, that’s another $84,000 in up-front savings. A brewpub also would have multiple EDUs.
The town also has agreed to waive taxes on improvements within the DDD for 5 years, and the Laurel Redevelopment Corporation will discount the value of land it owns along Broad Creek by at least 25 percent. The full slate of incentives can be viewed in the district plan.
The town and LRC also are assembling a comprehensive program to address housing of all kinds within the proposed district. One third of Laurel’s housing dates to 1939 or earlier, a much higher percentage than the state or Sussex County. Rental properties, large historic homes, and smaller homes would be eligible for an array of grants and loans if the town gets its DDD designation. We are partnering with USDA Rural Development, Sussex County Habitat for Humanity, NCALL and others to rehab existing housing and encourage home ownership.
Laurel has many challenges. It has the lowest median household income (MHI) of any town in Delaware. That is a key indicator of need. When reviewing towns’ applications, 50 percent of the scoring will be based on need and the impact a DDD designation would have on the town. Twenty percent is based on the incentives a town is willing to offer, and another 30 percent is based on the actual plans for what will happen in the district. The entire application and plan is available on this website’s DDD page.
But the town is also poised for a rebirth, with so much groundwork already laid. Mayor John J. Shwed commented:
“I believe the town is on track to revitalize the historic, downtown section of the community. By focusing on our new brand ‘Laurel, where great things come naturally, I believe we will create a new interest in development along Broad Creek,” Mayor Shwed said. “Hopefully, the incentives offered in our Downtown Development District application will entice some entrepreneurs to jump start the process by building some ecotourism-related businesses – then new residential sites will follow!”
