BENEFITS:
- Centene provides all financing for the $755 million mixed-use Project, constructed in two phases and includes (a) two office towers totaling approximately 975,000 square feet, (b) a 900-1,100 seat civic auditorium, (c) retail space of approximately 99,700 square feet with additional retail-ready space, (d) an approximately 120-room hotel, (e) structured parking and (f) related mechanical space.
- Centene also anticipates approximately 120 luxury apartments; however, this component is not subject to tax abatement under the Plan and, as such, not included in the tax impact analysis.
- City grants a 40% abatement of real property taxes for a period of 20 years from the completion of each phase and a 50% abatement of personal property taxes for a period of 10 years from the completion of each phase, except that no tax abatement will be granted for the following: (a) real and personal property taxes related to the residential component, (b) personal property taxes related to the hotel and (c) personal property taxes related to office occupants other than Centene.
- In addition, there will be a sales tax exemption on Centene’s purchase of construction materials and equipment for the Project. The estimated amount of the sales tax exemption is $11.6 million (consisting of $8.9 million in state sales taxes and $2.7 million in St. Louis County sales taxes)
- Over a 20-year period, the Project is anticipated to generate over $100 million of real and personal property tax revenues in today’s dollars.
- The Plan provides for an abatement of approximately $38,938,045 million of the $100 million of real and personal property tax revenues generated by the Project. These are tax revenues that would not otherwise have been generated without Centene’s investment in the Project.
- Of the remaining $60 million of real and personal property tax revenues that will received by the taxing districts, approximately $50 million are new tax revenues generated by the Project and the remaining $10 million are tax revenues that would have been received without any development of the Project Site.
- For the Clayton School District, there will be approximately $45.5 million in real and personal property tax revenues generated in today’s dollars, of which the School District will receive approximately $27.3 million (of which $22.4 million is new tax revenues as a result of the Project). Centene’s tax abatement as it relates to the School District is estimated to be approximately $18.2 million.
- For the City of Clayton, there will be approximately $9.4 million in real and personal property tax revenues generated in today’s dollars, of which the City will receive approximately $5.6 million (of which $4.6 million is new tax revenues as a result of the Project). Centene’s tax abatement as it relates to the City is estimated to be approximately $3.8 million.
- As mentioned previously, these amounts do not include any additional real and personal property taxes generated by the residential component, or personal property taxes generated by the hotel and the office occupants other than Centene. None of these additional taxes are subject to abatement.
- As a result of the Project, the City and the region will receive the following benefits:
- Creation of approximately 1,000 new high-quality jobs to the State and region with average salary of approximately $73,000;
- Two new world class office towers that will be LEED Gold certified and could bring additional businesses and opportunities to the City;
- Construction of a civic auditorium, which will be available for community use and will include ticketed events of regional or national prominence;
- Increased street-level retail activity;
- Pedestrian-friendly improvements with open, inviting public spaces; and
- Significant public infrastructure improvements, including new traffic signals and traffic signal synchronization, lane widening and traffic mitigation.