Mixed-use development, Jackstraw, at the Box Factory, is looking to receive a 10-year tax exemption of approximately $10.6 million under the City of Bend’s Multiple Unit Property Tax Exemption. On Dec. 5, the Bend Park and Recreation District Board approved the tax exemption. On January 3, the City Council will review the requested tax exemption and make a final decision.
The Jackstraw project is located at 310 and 350 SW Industrial Way. It sits in a Mixed-Use Urban Zone and plans to create 313 apartment units and over 16,000 square feet of retail with hundreds of bicycle and car parking spaces.
Under MUPTE, a tax exemption can occur if a property meets the requirements outlined in the City’s program. The program encourages multi-unit housing by offering a 10-year tax exemption. Requirements to qualify for the exemption include having three or more residential units, a multi-story development and justification for the elimination of existing infrastructure.
The project must provide three public benefits. For this project, those include energy efficient building, a wrapped parking structure and mobility-supportive amenities. An additional benefit outlined in the Dec. 5 presentation was two townhome units planned as in-home child-care facilities.
Additionally, to qualify for the MUPTE, the project must not be financially viable without the tax exemption. Developers Killian Pacific made this claim, noting in the staff report that if they don’t receive the exemption, the project will be put on hold and stop construction. Construction on the Jackstraw Project began in April 2023 and is expected to finish in October 2025.
According to the report, if the project is approved for the tax exemption, it’s estimated to generate approximately $27 million in total revenue over the 30-year lifetime of the Core Tax Increment Finance Area.
This article appears in Dec 13, 2023 – Dec 25, 2024.
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Nope. They started without the exemption so clearly they had the means. Benefits to the public ? For those who can afford to live there and not the Bend public. 27 million in revenue in 30 yrs. Need to subtract the 10 million of tax loss from developer if passed. There is so much wrong with this.