Comcast’s new Innovation and Technology Center, which the
company unveiled yesterday and expects to begin building this summer, is
estimated to cost $1.2 billion. Of that, $40 million—around three-and-a-half
percent of the total cost—will come from city and state grants.
As a portion of the project cost, the taxpayer subsidies for
the new skyscraper aren’t breaking any records. Still, $40 million is real
money; the Department of Licenses and Inspections, for example, gets by on an
annual budget of roughly half that figure.
So, where’s it coming from, and what’s it for?
According to Steve Kratz, communications director for the
state Department of Community and Economic Development, Pennsylvania’s $30
million grant commitment will be disbursed over four years, with $10 million
granted in both 2014 and 2015, and $5 million in 2016 and 2017, when the
project is scheduled to be finished.
The state will determine which programs to pull the funds
from on a yearly basis, Kratz said, based on which state programs have the
capacity.
At least $25 million of the $30 million in grants is
required to be spent on public improvements, including the expansion of the
subway concourse at Suburban Station, the construction of a winter garden on
18th Street, and various improvements to the sidewalks and streets.
Kratz said that he expects the whole $30 million will go
toward public improvements, however, as Comcast is likely to spend more than
that amount on that work.
For its part, the City of Philadelphia has committed $10
million from its Capital budget, subject to the approval of City Council. The
entire grant will be dedicated to public infrastructure improvements, according
to Mayor Michael Nutter’s press secretary, Mark McDonald.
In addition, Comcast will receive $4.5 million in state
job-creation tax incentives for the 1,500 jobs it has committed to bring to the
city. The tax credits will be issued as the jobs are created, at a rate of
$3,000 per job.
Source: PlanPhilly.com
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