EDWARDSVILLE – Realty Income of San Diego, owner of the property where a tornado hit an Amazon warehouse, paid $919.52 in property tax this year as if they owned a tiny farm.
They’ll pay about a thousand times as much in a few years, but for now the property qualifies for taxation as 54 acres of agricultural land.
The promise of easy taxation for 10 years completed a package of advantages that Edwardsville offered to Amazon in competition with other communities.
Williams
Amazon opened the warehouse in 2017, near buildings of Amazon and other businesses at the interchange of Interstates 255 and 270.
Edwardsville had designated the area as an enterprise zone in 1997, under state law providing incentives for private employers to build in depressed areas.
“It’s the best performing enterprise zone in the state of Illinois,” said Edwardsville community development director Walter Williams.
Williams said businesses have built 22.3 million square feet of space in the zone and they currently employ about 15,000 people. Employment is up 56 percent since 2015.
The location made the zone more competitive for Amazon than incentives, according to Williams.
He said it was a matter of hours and miles for truck drivers.
The zone generated $543,728.32 in taxes this year.
In 2030, Williams said, it will generate more than $16 million.
If Realty Income paid the regular rate this year, it would pay about $860,000.
After the tornado, Realty Income issued a statement that, “We are deeply saddened by each of the lives lost, and the impact on families and communities.”
The statement offered prayers for everyone impacted by the storms and for the long term journey of healing ahead.
It expressed gratitude for the hard work and dedication of those who led rescue and recovery operations.
Realty Income pays taxes for clients like Amazon and recovers the amounts from them, according to its website.
The website states that Realty Income owns 11,000 properties in all 50 states, Puerto Rico, the United Kingdom, and Spain.
It states that these are generally free standing buildings in prime locations with good access and visibility.
“Most of our commercial clients operate retail stores providing non discretionary goods and services at low price points,” it states.
It states that properties leased to investment grade rated clients account for about half of its total annualized rental revenue. It structures triple net leases, meaning clients are responsible for taxes, maintenance, and insurance.
It states that this structure reduces exposure to rising property expenses and preserves a predictable cash flow stream.