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April 17, 2007
Yonkers mayor unveils $856.3 million proposed budget that includes 5 percent tax hike
The Journal News
The headlines in Yonkers are all about the 5% tax hike, but the cherry on top of Mayor Amicone's $856.3-million budget is a $19.1-million one-time cash infusion from Forest City Ratner.
Amicone plugged a projected $43 million budget gap with the added property tax revenue and $5 million in fund balance, and through a financial agreement with Forest City Ratner, the developer of the planned Ridge Hill Village residential and commercial complex.
Forest City Ratner has agreed to pay $11.1 million at one time as part of a tax agreement with the city, instead of paying the money over a three-year period as was originally proposed, the mayor said. The company also agreed to pay $8 million to buy out the lease on the 81-acre property where it plans to build, Amicone said.
NoLandGrab: Remember folks, there's still a federal probe looking into the City Council's actions regarding Ridge Hill, which may turn up nothing, or may turn up another example in which Forest City Ratner plugged someone else's projected budget deficit.
Posted by lumi at April 17, 2007 6:36 AM