Have you heard? Downtown Locust Grove is now eligible for new tax credit incentives through the Rural Zone Program! Locust Grove is one of nine Georgia communities to receive designation beginning in 2019.
R.U.R.A.L (Revitalizing Underdeveloped Rural Area Legislation) zones assist with new job creation and private investment within the historic commercial cores of Georgia’s small towns. The program includes three tax credit incentives : Job Creation Tax Credit, Property Investment Credit, and Rehabilitation Tax Credit (for historic AND non-historic properties!). Each new full-time-equivalent job created within the district will be eligible for a $2000 State income tax credit for 5 years, as well as 25% of the property purchase price and 30% of eligible rehabilitation costs. This designation lasts for five years, but credits can be carried for up to 10 years after project completion
Rural Zone designation was developed in 2017 by the Georgia General Assembly, Department of Community Affairs, and Georgia Department of Economic Development as a new tool for economic development in Georgia’s rural downtowns. Required criteria for designation include a population of less than 15,000, a concentrated core of historic commercial structures, and demonstrated blight and disinvestment downtown. The City of Locust Grove joins eight other Georgia communities: Avondale Estates, Greensboro, Hartwell, Hogansville, Jessup, Monticello, Sylvester, and Waycross in the most recent round of designations.
“It is our sincere hope that designation as a Rural Zone will help support economic development in our historic commercial core and serve as a valuable new tool for transforming our historic downtown into the thriving district envisioned in the City’s 2016 LCI Study” said Locust Grove Mayor Robert Price. “By further incentivizing investment, historic rehabilitation, and job creation in the heart of our small community, we aim to make the City of Locust Grove an even more inviting place to work, live, and visit”.
Tim Young, Locust Grove City Manager stated: “We are happy that we were designated after the hard work our Staff put into the nomination process. The outcome of all of these efforts will be a more vibrant downtown that emphasizes our unique historical and cultural heritage in our already busy developing city.”
With this new tool for Downtown Development, look forward to new businesses and investment in our downtown over the coming 5 years!
For more information about Locust Grove’s Rural Zone, or to check your eligibility for tax credits, please contact Anna Ogg at aogg@locustgrove-ga.gov or call 770-692-2320.
Additional information can also be found on DCA’s website HERE!
Locust Grove Main Street 