Thompson, NY - Town Backs Off Tax Breaks

Thompson, NY - You want to move off Broadway in Monticello, with vacant storefronts aplenty, and set up business in the surrounding town?
That's fine. The Town of Thompson welcomes you. Just don't expect property tax breaks too, officials say.

Catskill Dermatology is planning a move from its cramped quarters on the village's main street, where it rents space from other doctors, to its own new, 6,400-square-foot space in Bridgeville.
Dermatologist Steven Fishman wants to expand his practice, adding the Catskills' first plastic surgeon, a $200,000-per-year physician's assistant, a second $300,000-per-year doctor and a smattering of other jobs.

The Sullivan County Industrial Development Agency granted him tax breaks, including a one-time mortgage tax exemption and a break on sales tax for building materials.
But the IDA also wants to secure a 20-year property tax break for Fishman totaling about $41,000, says CEO Allan Scott.

But Thompson, Supervisor Tony Cellini, who at one time chaired the county IDA, says the town is "strictly against" that kind of a break for any business right now. In recent years, the town has denied breaks to Wal-Mart, Home Depot, Staples and other retailers, he said.
"The IDA's of the opinion that they can shove this down our throats," said Councilman Bill Rieber. The Town Board unanimously passed a resolution opposing the property tax breaks. In the town's view, that's the end of the discussion. But Scott says he'd like to keep talks going.
"These are very difficult times," Scott says.

But Cellini says tax breaks should be handled case by case. "Let's not give the store away when we get these big projects coming in," Cellini says. "They're going to be here anyway."
Fishman said he was disappointed with the town's decision. "My understanding was that the Town of Thompson was behind the project up until a month ago," he says. "So I was surprised by the change of heart."