MASON CITY – In another development deal to aid a retail business, the City of Mason City is proposing a staggered 5 year tax break for a local car dealership to help it move west.
According to city documents, Hosmer Honda, located at 808 South Monroe Avenue, intends to relocate west to the 3800 block of 4th SW.
To aid Hosmer, the city is offering a staggered 5 year tax break/rebate (tax increment financing) on the supposed higher value of the property to which the Honda dealership will move to.
Hosmer must create 4 new jobs within three years and must employ 11 people at a minimum of $15.00 per hour, peaking at a minimum of 15 employees by the end of the development agreement (5 years).
In year one, Hosmer will receive a 75% refund on the incremental taxes (the higher value of the property after it is developed, minus the current assessed value); in year two, a 60% rebate; in year 3, a 45% rebate, in year 4, a 30% rebate, and year 5, a 15% rebate.
In a letter to City Hall, Hosmer Honda said “We are so pleased to be working with you on a mutually beneficial tax refund for our new Honda Store.”
Related to the assessed value of property in Mason City, on February 26th, 2013, the Mason City Conference Board – made up of Mayor Eric Bookmeyer, the City Council, Cerro Gordo County Supervisors, and the Mason City School Board – unanimously approved a $1 million project in which City Assessor Dana Naumann will lead a team throughout the city to re-assess all commercial and residential properties.
That project will cost the average Mason city taxpayer $55 over the course of 5 years, in addition to any higher assessment on each property.
“It’s a long project,” Naumann said at the time. “It’s pretty involved.”
Once the project is complete, Naumann explained, the other three taxing entities involved (Council and Mayor; Supervisors and the Mason City School Board) “should have more property value to levy against.” Therefore, they may have an opportunity during budget cycles to lower their own tax rates (the tax levy).
That’s what happens when there is nothing but fast food jobs, mentality, money to be made in a comminity run by liberal democrats. Just opposite of what they claim, as usual. Wake up sheep! There is nothing to draw business/industry into your shriveling town so you gotta do something to keep jobs in town. In my visits there I’ve noticed the only new people in town are there for the easily obtained welfare, they’re sitting on porch steps all over town with a pit bull in tow. Wake the hell up, sheep!
Make that community
@As seen-Sorry, but all of the council and the mayor with the exception of Kuehn are Republicans. And all anyone knows about him is he is all for himself and no one else.
@LVS
The Mayor and entire City Council are liberals.
These folks may hang out with Republicans. Some even may be registered as Republicans but they vote as liberal as you can get. They have a name for them RINO’s. (Republican In Name Only) A Republican is supposed to stand for self-reliance. That goes for business and industry also. That is not happening here in Mason City!
I see Matt puts Steve Kings picture up with Bookmeyer standing in the background. Those two are day and night. I don’t know why Congressman King allows himself to advertized with a liberal like Bookmeyer.
Over the years I have seen lots of so called Republicans promote so much welfare on the city council that it’s startling.
Heck, the Chamber of Commerce was once a champion for conservative causes. They vote for all Democrats now. Old Man Blodgett and Todd Blodgett are both liberals. Oh, they will argue they are not but phoney is phoney!
@Watchdog-I have heard that before and I am sure you are correct. I think that the democratic chairman of this area was feeding Bookie information through Urdahl and Blodgett about the new candidates. You had better get ready as the next four years are going to be hell for the common person in this city.
@Voo Doo Taxes is right. LVS is right.
All this BS has been going on for decades. Year after year the Chamber and City Hall put out one project or another. Where has it got Mason City.
No where!
Mason City is no better off and has less to offer the average citizen today to better themselves. After all the promises and money spent very few new jobs. Very few good paying jobs!
I can come back 20 years from now and Mason City will still have a small minded Mayor like Bookmeyer and the city will be no better off.
Tax subsidy for Hosmer, what a crock!
It is what it is.
The way I understand it is the city is increasing the tax base ie taxable property value but delaying collecting the increase for a few years. The city will still be collecting for the old building but the theory is if Hosmer didn’t get this tax relief he could have built it somewhere else, like Clear Lake. Now if you really want to start bi***ing about unjust tax relief, lets talk about all the churches and church property that is not taxed AT ALL.
@Reggie (Red)-I can’t argue with your comments about the churches at all. You should throw in the hospital as we..
@Reggie
You mush realize the building that Hosmer is vacating, taxable value will go down.
Property taxes on commercial property not only use the physical buildings and land for property tax purposes, they also compute in the “amount” of business being done there.
It is possible some other business will come along and make use of the building Hosmer is vacating, but you can bet the vacated building will end up paying lower amount of taxes on his old building.
I own several commercial buildings and when I rent them out my taxes go up and down depending on my tenet.
In all likely hood the abandoned building will be paying much less in taxes and the city will not re-coup there tax give away.
It gets complicated I know, but when buildings go empty they deteriorate and are worth less and pay less property taxes.
@Voo DooTaxes-That building will probably remain empty unless another care sales company wants it. All the oil, paints, solvents and other stuff that has been used in there make it only usable for automobiles. It will sit there until they tear it down and build something else in that spot. All that tax money will be lost. Also, if T.I.F. is so great why is the state investigating it for fraud. They are saying cities have been misusing T.I.F to use it as payoff for political favors.
@LVS…since you are so educated on sooo many topics perhaps you should research who actually owns that building…
What difference does that make? Here you go again trying to shoot the messenger rather than listen to the message.
LVS is spot on!
@defender-why the hell would I care? If you are as smart as you think you are you would already know. You have not lived anywhere near long enough to smart mouth me. When you get out of diapers come back and make more snide comments.
The current and soon to be former hosmer building will be some low rate car lot after they move. Part of the deterioration of mason city thanks to the mass migration west of all the retail. mall will be dead, neighborhoods will crumble, there will be a sh!tty car lot on every corner. We will all be able to be a 1992 chrylser lebaron anywhere in the city soon. Tiff at its finest, thanks eric and cronies for ruining mason city.
You talk silly. Hosmer isn’t going to Clear Lake. Anyway, if he did move his Dealership over to the Lake, Mason City’s tax give a way wouldn’t stop him. He would move anyway if it meant he would make more money!
I too will never buy anything from Hosmer. I don’t support the greedy.
lvs-it is not lost tax revenue. the city will experience a minor tax revenue increase during the period of the agreement and then collect 100% of the new taxes forever after that. it doesnt cost you or me anything. you keep talking about skarlis–if they spent 75k they likely didn’t add any additional value to their asessment. with no new(incremental)value there is no new tax-so no way to rebate via tif. Now, I’d be willing to bet that if skarlis’ wanted to invest millions into a new facility within an eligible tif district that the city would be very willing to offer them some kind of a tif rebate. In the overall scheme of things these rebates are a drop in the bucket compared to the investment that a business owner has to make to create the increment. It isn’t about favoritism-like you guys like to believe-it’s about expanding the tax base in a way that costs the taxpayers nothing.
Why doesn’t anyone understand how these deals actually work?
If Hosmer did nothing, there would be no additional taxes.
What the city is doing is giving him a temporary reprieve on the additional taxes they would pay as a result of the improvements and additions. The net result is still an increase to the city’s taxable properties, and an increase in taxes being paid to the city. It does not cost the city anything, they are not giving him your tax money. They are simply refunding a portion of the additional taxes his business will be paying as a result of the addition. (75% the first year, 60% the next year, and so on).
Is it really that difficult to understand, or did everyone fail finance class?
@Anonymous-how can you say it is not costing the city any money? And, then in the next sentence tell us how big a “refund” the city is giving him on his taxes? That is money that the city will never, never get back. It is gone. Then when the time frame is up and he says, oh my god, the economy has gone down and my sales are down so I had to lay off or close my business so the jobs are gone. So sorry. You think that doesn’t happen? It happens every day. Look what Obama did to G.M. and closed all those dealerships. Businesses should invest in their “own” business and not use taxpayer money to make profits. Besides, They base the “income” on wages and benefits including the owners. The people that actually do the work do not make that much. Ask the guy changing oil how much he makes. But you don’t mind taking his taxes so the rich can get richer.
That is the point you are missing. They are only refunding him a portion of the taxes that HE PAID! If his business didn’t expand, there would be NO NEW TAX REVENUE. At the end of the day, the city actually collects MORE TAXES because of the improvements being made. The city is only giving a break on the ADDITIONAL TAXES that will be paid for the ADDITIONAL VALUE of the property.
They are not taking your tax money to pay Hosmer, or any other business. They are simply giving them a short term tax break to invest in a larger end result.
We all pay taxes. When do I get a chunk of mine back?
@Anonymous-It amounts to the same thing. Lost tax revenue.
It is not lost tax revenue. It is tax revenue positive. and, although they add job creation clauses and a few other misc “strings” its really about expanding the tax base. if hosmer doesn’t add the jobs-of course that would be dissapointing and the city could consider termanating his agreement–but the expanded tax base is still there. you keep talking about skarlis–they spent 75k–likely didnt increase the asessable value of their property so there is no way to provede them with a tif rebate. however, if skarlis’ wanted to spend millions on a new facility within an eligible tif distrct–i bet the city would be very open to working with them on a tif rebate to assist in a very minor way(which is all these rebates gerenally amount to). it isnt about favoritism its about tax base expansion.
If he didn’t expand, there would be no new profits either. The profits alone should justify his move, not the un-needed and un-deserved tax break.
Anonymous and jvs, you might as well save your breath. There is no getting through to these blockheads. Facts are no match for their beliefs!
If anyone is confused it is Anonymous. What you fail to realize in business is this.
If there is a need you fill and you make money. Taxes are the cost of doing business.
Taxes for home owners is the cost to receive service.
You blur those two.
When the need exists business compete, or they used to with their own money. That is called risk.
Asking the taxpayers to give you a tax break when the business was going to move anyway is absurd.
New Jobs? You talk silly. New jobs are created when the need arises from making a profit on a service or product. Giving someone tax dollars to create a job is a pipe dream that you have bought into.
You fail to understand that government can not create a job. Need for products and service do that. Giving anyone tax dollars to create a job is bass ackwarks.
This article rolls two separate items together, TIF financing for Hosmer’s relocation & additional new jobs and the city-wide reappraisal for assessments by the assessor’s office.
As to the Hosmer move, I see the city is attaching a new jobs requirement onto the proposal and if Hosmer does not deliver then the TIF dollars will be reclaimed as they were in the IC Systems call center matter.
In general, I do not like property tax incentives granted to any retailer. It essentially puts other repair shops in town in the position of paying their taxes in full while their competitor Hosmer gets off paying less. I do not see any nefarious political plot here as previous councils put in place TIF districts which allows those located in such districts to apply for TIF financing as an occupant of the district.
On the reappraisal matter: as I recall, I think the state requires reappraisal by the assessor every so often in order to have a reliable base for assessments going forward. If this should have been done while Zinnell was in office and was not is unknown to me.
I agree. No TIF for retail sales. The government is picking winners and losers in these cases. Having said that, I believe all taxes should be lower and government should spend less. Reagan wasn’t perfect, but he was right about taxes.
Reagan raised taxes 11 times. He doubled the fuel tax even…
Who cares? He is long dead.
Worthless county hired an outside company for 178 thousand dollars – taxes went up 25/30% – and if you wanted to argue your new assesment you had to contact that company – assessors offfice was off the hook – thans Mr.Governor for the tax break on commercial property 5% – fat cat public servants city/county figured that one out and took the money right back for themselves – so much for helping the little guy. BS = BS
Put a end to this vote for Max.
These car dealer owners need a break! We all need to chip in some money and give it to Hosmer. I’m serious, ALL of us regardless of income. How is Hosmer supposed pay salaries and make an income if we don’t help him? He’s in need. He needs our money. Please, won’t you help a car dealer?
I see many of you are not at all knowledgeable on TIF and why it was created and how it was to be used.
Check out Think Tank Publications from the 60’s and 70’s. Check out the Federal Reserve’s agenda to pump money into the economy after they stopped using M factors to control the amount of money banks have to loan.
The Federal Reserve moved to using interest rates to control the economy. Well that didn’t work so good because the country went into hyper inflation.
After they used high interest rates in the late 70’s and 80’s to control inflation they had to find another source of money.
It was Public/Private ventures. The Public part are tax subsidies.
TIF was just another tool the Democrats and RINO’s passed to take wealth away from the working stiff.
Now we have leadership at local levels playing monopoly with our tax dollars and we have not got a darned thing to say about it. Well, that is not exactly all correct. We would have something to say about it if we elected people who governed by consensus and listened to the man on the street.
TIF does cost the taxpayers money.
In Mason City it is misused to the max.
@ Crookmeyer is done, what proof do you have that Minert asked Bookmeyer for anything? What proof do you have that Blodgett got anything for making the introduction? I think Bookmeyer cooked up the whole thing. To get some campaign money. That is why I voted for Max. I do not blame Minert’s for taking it, I would.
I never said nothing like that Fat. Did Minert’s get the money, yes they did. Did Booky line it up, yes he did. Did Toddy boy introduce them, yes he did. Do you drink with Beermonger or do dope with Toddy Boy, I bet you do.
@ LVS. You are correct on all counts, especially about the favoritism relating to the Harley-Davidson deal. I cannot afford the Country club, but it has been reported how that deal was put together there and subsequently consummated. (see the blog by Retired Lehigh on the Bookmeyer donor article for the best explanation I have read). In summary, the genesis was that Bookmeyer got Gary Blodgett’s son Todd to arrange a lunch meeting at the Country club, whereupon Blodgett, Jr. introduced Bookmeyer to Ron Minert’s son, Steve. Shortly thereafter, Bookmeyer manipulated the City Council to award our money to Harley-Davidson.
Rich takes care of rich it never changes. Blimpmyer takes care of them, they take care of him.
Glad they got this corp welfare before Bookmeyer is back to being the loner he is
The city might not have had a choice! Hosmer might have threw punches in city hall!!!
Seems Like everytime the use of TIF comes up we have to go through this long drawn out bashing. TIF is one of the only mechanisms/tools the city has to support economic development and it costs the taxpayers nothing. You state in the article it costs an average taxpayer $55–how do you figure? The City will still collect taxes on the old property with very little reduction. plus the City will collect 100% of the exisiting taxes on the new property; plus (in year one) 25% of the new(incremental) tax created by the project-and then slightly better each year for five years. After five years the City will collect 100% of the taxes on both propertys forever. This is a short term property tax revenue INCREASE for the City and it’s taxpayers and a long term windfall for property taxpayers. Clearly the author of this article does not understand how TIF works or is simply preying on the Rich vs. Poor consensus amoungst NIT readers-perhaps in an attempt to sway voters?
Sorry–I just reread the article and misunderstood the $55 cost was related the reasessing project and not the Hosmer deal. I dind’t catch the transition from one topic to the next. However, my point that the Hosmer project will not cost taxpayers anything as is implied in the article stands.
@jvs-That is pure BULL. T.I.F. does cost us all money. It is basically donating money for remodeling or a start up. They run it out for five to ten years without collecting a penny in taxes. In case you were not aware, we need taxes to pay for the basic needs of the city. When there isn’t enough money, they raise our taxes. Most of the time the company’s shut down and are gone before we get a cent on the investment and we just lose all that income. It is a stupid plan that is used in the good old boy network to pay off their buddy’s with our money. Anyone who thinks it doesn’t cast us money is a damn fool.
It is unfair to help one without offering it to all businesses, there are other car dealers in town where it their free handout tax break
Cliff–tif is available to any business within an eligible and designated tif district. these are areas of town that have been identified in our community as key areas for growth. any business wanting to build in these districts would be eligible. the city isnt really concerned with what type of business it is they are primarily looking at each deals opportunity to add property value(and tax revenue) to the district. these aren’t free handouts-generally speaking these are large multi-million dollar projects where the tif rebate represents a very small amount in the overal budget of the project. the rebate is only a portion of the new tax created by the project-not a reallocation of anyone elses property tax revenue. dont be fooled by others here on this site that either don’t have the facts or arent able to understand the facts.
@jvs-I happen to know for a fact that the Scarless is super upset because he put 75K into his dealership on South Monroe and never received a penny to help from the city. How come his competitor get city money and Scarless doesn’t?? How come Harley got 100K to fix up their dealership and we gave them a alley and the infastructure and Honda didn’t get a penny. Are you trying to tell me there is no favortism, because I am not buting that at all. How come Dimensions got help and the other printing company’s didn’t. How come we paid Metalcraft to build a new factory and we didn’t with other company’s. These arre all established buinesses that are going no where. We have no business subsidizing them with taxpayer money. You can try to justify it all you want but it is wrong to spend my money with out my consent.
not wrong, lvs. TIF works exactly as I stated. the rebate he will recieve is only a percentage of the new tax that he creates. if he didn’t create it it wouldnt exist. it isnt reallocating from the tax you or I pay. This project and the use of TIF is new tax POSITIVE in the short term and a tax windfall in the longterm. I know you guys love to think other wise–but you are just wrong. you said “without collecting a penny in taxes”—that is pure bull-as you say. he doesn’t recieve anything unless he first creates a new(incremental) tax and then pays the new tax -only then is it returned to him. you are being spoon fed this rich vs. poor way of viewing every topic either without the facts or without understanding the facts.
@jvs-I am not buying that at all. T.I.F. is nothing more than a way for the slimeballs to pay off their buddy’s.
seriously- how do you figure? be specific.
@jvs-read the above comments. It is pretty clear.
The real truth is that if this business owner wants to move he should, and the taxpayers dont owe him anything, least of all free tax rebates that no one else gets. If there is so much profit to be made, the business owner should see that the move is worth it and then go ahead. City hall is not a bank. If one gets a tax break, everyone should, including his competitors who are now at a disadvantage. That is only fair, but that is not how it works right now. The current atmosphere is ‘what can the people of Mason City do for me’ instead of just being a good business owner. Everyone wants a handout nowadays, even the rich, maybe most of all the rich.
What do you mean? Mark Holt, Adam Gold, Steve Mineart, Steve Doerfler, Jay Lala, Robin Anderson, they never took nothin from the taxpayers or got special treatment…. did they? Oh wait, yes, they all got their arms in the cookie jar up to their shoulder blades.
You left out all the Mercy admins and doctors. Gave thousands to Bookmeyer and Tornquist. They would tear down half the city to make it a parking lot if they could. Really, the way Mercy treats people is hideous. Horror stories galore. How many more hav to die? Then it wants to destroy the city on top of it.
If TIF is used the right way, it’s a good thing, but does add to the debt of the general fund, if that is something you worry about. I would spend it more on infastructure to the area (upgrades to water and sewer within that TIF District) rather than direct payments/etc to businesses.
Why didnt the city give them a tax break when they lost the Dodge
Franchise and they let some people go. They could care less about people who bought cars from them. We should see there financials
Welcome to Bookmeyer’s world of “Sustainable Development”. Bookmeyer and the City Council are busy spreading our wealth up to the greedy. This is right out of Carl Marx’s book on Communist/Socialist Government.
Mayor Bookmeyer and his gang got themselves in power through the an election process that few voted in.
Once in power the “Dictator” took over City Hall and applied his Socialist Agenda.
You might think this is far fetched but this is as far left as you can get.
People better wake up and realize the Progressive Agenda and Socialist Agenda are one and the same.
The little guy gets his tax dollars taken from him/her and given to wealthy business without anyone’s consent. How free is that?
By the way, Hosmer Honda would have moved west anyway if it was in their best interests to increase they exposure and cash flow. They need tax breaks like the working man needs another leak in his wallet.
Another head shaker!
Right again. If it’s so profitable to move west, why do they need free tax break? Why not move anyway jemremy boy? And please, dont punch anyone in the face, it’s not nice, keep your hands in your pockets you tiny weasel.
So if a council said two plus yeas ago that it should establish guidelines and parameters to give out TIF money then now in late 2013 what are the guidelines? They are bragging about all these agreements signed during there tenure
Metal Craft. Be Tornquest Next door neighbor
They had to move. They wanted to move
Diminsial Graphics. Drink at the Mason city Country Club
With the mayor. Have him over for dinner catered by the Quarry
Harley Davidson. We don’t need to much here
Those are some prime examples of bookmeyer helping
Out his friends
Harley deal … smelled like leftover quarry food that even mark hult wouldnt touch. Eric would eat it though, he eat anything. If I was the Honda man from waterloo i would sue the city blind for helping my competition 3 blocks away. What a joke of a way to do business. Help some, thumb your nose at the rest?
Unbelievable first he beats up a customer then be beats up city hall
For a stupid tax break. I will buy a car elsewhere
He’s not really doing anything other than adding inventory to his Toyota lot.He’s going from two buildings to one. Why the tax break?
This is BS there is no reason to give a retail bus. any tax breaks. If retail wants to come to town it is because they know they can make money and they will come regardless of hand outs from the tax-payer. The leaders of this town need to get their heads out of their a_ _ and stop this..
I improved my property. Can I get a tax break?
Yes you can if it raised your taxable value. Call City Hall
you have to be a country club member i think ten you can have anything you want
This should be interesting. We as citizens of Masson city should be able
To see an audit financials from the Hosmer Business. A few years ago when the Harley deal went done and their was no case history or rules written about how TIF money was going to be distributed, allocated or given out. All members of the council
Voted for it but said some principles and guidelines should be established
Since Bookmeyer is now touting 14 or 15 business agreements what are those guidelines?
Unfortunately, I can’t afford the country club. I guess that means I just have to foot the bill myself and not get any breaks. Stuck in the middle…
Seriously. If you improve your house and it increases the taxable value you can get tax abatement. Call City Hall or check the city web site.
Right. After they re-assess you and nail on the new value, thus your taxes are way higher and you save nothing and actually, pay out the nose. Who would call city hall to tell them ‘hey my house is worth more, please come look and see, so you can charge me more taxes’ do you think people are stupid?
@Anonymous. Thank you for the tip. I will do that. Any little bit can help.
You do not have to be a member the country club just get Todd Blodgett to take you there with Booky. That was how Minert got our money for the Harley.
This is absolute BULL. Hosmer is one of bookies big supporters. This is nothing but a good old boy pay off for contributions to his re-election fund. If they want to run a business then they need to invest their own money, not ours. Vote these jerks out before they bankrupt the city.
@LVS I sure hope you checked your facts and saw that the Hosmers DID NOT contribute to Bookmeyer’s campaign…
Inflation is on the way. The Feds want a rate of 4-6% a year to help the economy grow. So be prepared for your real estate values to rise again and for real estate taxes to skyrocket as assessments are made in the future. It’s the only way we can support our infrastructure. Our local governments need to start charging tax-exempt entities for infrastructure services, plain and simple. Why should Mercy and churches receive free fire as police department services? Free use of city streets and highways? NOT. I don’t think that is what our Founding Fathers had in mind. They had no idea of the type of infrastructure and services our society would be able to develop and how expensive it would be to provide them. And they had no idea that one day non-profits or government would own 25% of the real estate in New York City. I wonder what percentage of property value in Mason City is off the tax rolls or is getting a reduction due to TIF.
Where’s my tax break for staying in this town BRENT!?
I see it now. The council and mayor bragged that they have kept the tax rate (levy) FLAT for 2 years… no increases. While they planned to INCREASE the value of our homes and businesses by sending the assessor to our doors!!!
They really bamboozled us. This will hurt, bad.