1. Public Hearing and ACTION on FIRST READING on Ordinance Number 2020- 1652-A, to repeal and replace Section 348-1500 of the Historic Preservation Plan and adopt the 2020 Historic Preservation Plan. (Planning & Redevelopment Department)
By Juan Montoya
The City of Brownsville Commission will vote on first reading the 2020 Historic Preservation Plan Ordinance at today's meeting at 5:30 p.m. at City Hall.
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In 2019, 83 properties were included in the preservation plan and the 2020 plan will total 95, 12 more than last year.
In all, if approved, the plan will cost the city $94,583 in tax forgones. Among some of the properties are properties owned by Mayor Trey Mendez (3) and commissioner Rose Gowen and other prominent local residents like the McNair Family (3) and some pioneer families such as Simon Celaya, J.T. Canales, Alexander Stillman, etc.
Others have been bought by attorneys and restored for use as law offices of rented. Still others retain only a small percentage of the original structure and have had additions such as swimming pools and dwelling spaces that do not date back to the buildings' original construction.
Others qualified for the tax exemption because of their "association" with prominent groups in the community or because they house artifacts from historical prominent people.
Some commissioners say they want to "tighten" up the rules under which the properties are included in the tax exemption rolls.
Under the plan, some properties will receive 100 percent tax exemption, others 50 and some were removed due to the deterioration of the structures or failure by the owner to preserve the structures.
Although the ordinance requires the city to visit each property and to recommend inclusion or exclusion for tax exemption, some of the properties still on the tax exempt categories are in obvious need of repair or restoration.
And increasingly, some residents are asking why some of the properties have been granted 100 percent tax exemption by the city for as much as 11 years.
Have well-to-do investors in real estate hit upon the plan of purchasing historically-designated places with the knowledge that they will invest to restore them and then get a free ride on future ad valorem taxes?
"It's almost as if the exemption has become an entitlement for the well-to-do investors at the expense of the rest of the city's residents," said a local real estate developer.
By Juan Montoya
The City of Brownsville Commission will vote on first reading the 2020 Historic Preservation Plan Ordinance at today's meeting at 5:30 p.m. at City Hall.
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
In 2019, 83 properties were included in the preservation plan and the 2020 plan will total 95, 12 more than last year.In all, if approved, the plan will cost the city $94,583 in tax forgones. Among some of the properties are properties owned by Mayor Trey Mendez (3) and commissioner Rose Gowen and other prominent local residents like the McNair Family (3) and some pioneer families such as Simon Celaya, J.T. Canales, Alexander Stillman, etc.
Others have been bought by attorneys and restored for use as law offices of rented. Still others retain only a small percentage of the original structure and have had additions such as swimming pools and dwelling spaces that do not date back to the buildings' original construction.
Others qualified for the tax exemption because of their "association" with prominent groups in the community or because they house artifacts from historical prominent people.
Some commissioners say they want to "tighten" up the rules under which the properties are included in the tax exemption rolls.
Under the plan, some properties will receive 100 percent tax exemption, others 50 and some were removed due to the deterioration of the structures or failure by the owner to preserve the structures.
Depending on whether the properties are on te national register, a Texas Historical Landmark, local designated primary resource, have had substantial historical rehabilitation or is being proposed substantial rehab, they are allotted different exemption percentages.
Although the ordinance requires the city to visit each property and to recommend inclusion or exclusion for tax exemption, some of the properties still on the tax exempt categories are in obvious need of repair or restoration.
And increasingly, some residents are asking why some of the properties have been granted 100 percent tax exemption by the city for as much as 11 years.
Have well-to-do investors in real estate hit upon the plan of purchasing historically-designated places with the knowledge that they will invest to restore them and then get a free ride on future ad valorem taxes?
"It's almost as if the exemption has become an entitlement for the well-to-do investors at the expense of the rest of the city's residents," said a local real estate developer.
