SW Ohio largely bypassed by failed tax credit program

Of the 38 projects awarded money under the Ohio Historic Preservation Tax Credit pilot program, only three are located in southwest Ohio - and none in Hamilton County.

Conversely, Cuyahoga County alone received funding for 20 projects.

On Thursday, the Ohio Department of Development (ODOD), who administered the tax credit program, announced that the two-year program would be closed after its initial $120 million pool had been exhausted.

There was no dollar cap on individual awards, and, rather than evaluating the entire field of applicants to determine which projects would have the most local impact, ODOD chose to disburse funds on a first-come, first-served basis.

A total of 115 applications were submitted to ODOD, including the following local projects:

* $7.1 million for the Middle Earth Developers apartment/retail project at 617 Vine Street
* $4.5 million for the Bloomfield/Schon + Partners Factory Square mixed-use project in Northside
* $4 million for Dorian Development's Inwood Village condominium project in Mount Auburn
* $4 million for various 3CDC-owned buildings in Over-the-Rhine, including the proposed Project Beacon at 1539 Race Street
* $484,000 for the Urban Sites Properties Belmain condominium project at 1202-1204 Main Street
* $196,000 for Over-the-Rhine Community Housing's City Home project on Pleasant Street
* $50,000 for the rehabilitation of 1346 Broadway

The program would have provided refundable tax credits equal to 25 percent of qualified renovation rehabilitation expenditures.