![Architectural rendering of the LEED certified Church & State buildings on Detroit Ave. at West 29th in Cleveland. [LDA Architects]](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/24703ee/2147483647/strip/true/crop/980x551+0+0/resize/840x472!/format/webp/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Flegacy%2Fuploads%2F2019%2F4%2F22%2FChurch%20StateAerial_Credit_LDA_Architechts.jpg)
The city of Cleveland plans a deeper look at its policy of offering property tax abatements for new housing.
Cleveland offers 15-year tax abatements for new housing construction and significant home rehabs. Councilman Tony Brancatelli is sponsoring legislation to hire a consultant to reexamine those policies.
“We know we have some really strong markets in Ohio City, Tremont, University Circle,” he said. “The idea is to see, do we need to continue that policy in those neighborhoods? Can we leverage that policy in emerging markets? How do we jump-start markets that are flat?”
The study could look at possible changes to tax policies, he said, such as shortening the amount or lifespan of abatements, or using the policies to encourage affordable housing.
“That’s what we’re really looking at,” he said. “The broader policy, are there tweaks that we can do, that doesn’t hurt the existing market, at the same time can help some of our markets that need additional assistance?”
The Cleveland Foundation is providing $150,000 for the study.
