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The Clearwater Regional Chamber of Commerce
exists to enhance the business environment and promote economic
health and growth in the Clearwater region. We work with the
City of Clearwater’s Economic Development and Housing Department
to help improve and expand the economic base of the City of
Clearwater through the retention and expansion of existing
businesses, the attraction of new businesses and real estate
investments, and the attraction of a quality residential base.
Underlying this quality residential base is
an established regional inventory of manufacturing, information
technologies, marine sciences, medical technologies and
financial service industries; and a stable and growing retail
service sector ranging from small boutiques to major shopping
centers.
Clearwater, similar to other urban cities
within the Tampa Bay Region, has reached capacity development
with few tracts of vacant land available. Fortunately, however,
a substantial portion of the city’s downtown and beach
properties were built during an era of low-intensity
development, which when combined with structural age and current
non-functional land uses, provide unique opportunities for land
assembly, infill, adaptive-reuse and new development options.
The availability of these exceptional real
estate parcels coincides with a national and local movement to
return to a downtown urban living environment. When combined
with ease of access to a gorgeous beach environment and a large
regional employment base, Clearwater provides a combination hard
to ignore.
Through regional partnerships with Pinellas
County Economic Development (www.siliconbay.org) and the Tampa
Bay Partnership (www.TampaBay.org), more successes are on the
way. The city of Clearwater works closely with businesses moving
to the area to address land use planning, permitting, parking,
zoning, site plan review and environmental issues.
Resources and Incentives
The greater Downtown Clearwater area is a Community
Redevelopment Area (CRA) generating Tax Increment Financing
funds that are invested back into the downtown through a variety
of infrastructure improvements as well as façade improvement
grants, payment of impact fees, and more. In addition to being a
CRA, portions of the downtown area are classified as a
Brownfields Area (allowing for environmental site assessment
funding), a Small Business Administration HUBZone (a
Historically Underutilized Business Zone that is an empowerment
contracting program) and an Enterprise Zone (providing tax
incentives to businesses employing residents from the area).
These designations allow significant tax incentives for
companies in this area and those that bring jobs to the downtown
core.
The City of Clearwater and Pinellas County
participate in the Qualified Target Industry (QTI) tax refund
program through the state of Florida. The QTI tax refund is a
job incentive available to the City of Clearwater to encourage
quality job growth in targeted high value-added businesses and
corporate headquarters. For more information on these incentives
and assistance with relocating your business, call the City of
Clearwater Economic Development and Housing Department at (727)
562-4220.
Incentives
HUBZone
The HUBZone Empowerment Contracting program provides federal
contracting access opportunities for qualified small businesses
located in distressed areas. A small business to be eligible
must be located in a designated census tract, must be owned and
controlled by one or more U.S. Citizens, and at least 35% of its
employees must reside in a HUBZone. Eligible designated census
tracts in the City of Clearwater are 259.02, 262.00 and 268.08.
Brownfields
In 1997, the Florida Legislature enacted the Brownfields
Redevelopment Act to provide incentives for the private sector
to redevelop abandoned, idled, or underused industrial and
commercial properties where expansions or redevelopment is
complicated by actual or perceived environmental contamination.
The City of Clearwater has a federal and state designated
Brownfields area.
The City of Clearwater administers one of the most successful
Brownfields programs within the state. Since 1998, it has been
awarded over $3.1 million from state and federal agencies. The
Brownfields program provides individual grants in the designated
Brownfields area for Phase I and Phase II environmental site
assessments.
Enterprise Zone
An enterprise zone is a geographical area targeted for economic
revitalization. Incentives are available to eligible businesses
located in the Enterprise Zone must meet the following
requirements: Either pay Florida corporate income tax or collect
and pay sales and use tax.
Financial incentives offered under Florida’s Enterprise Zone
Program:
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Enterprise Zone jobs credit (Corporate
Income Tax) or sales tax refund for business machinery and
equipment used in an Enterprise Zone
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Enterprise Zone property tax credit
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Community Contribution Tax Incentive
Program
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Credit against sales tax for job creation
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Sales Tax refund for building materials
used in an Enterprise Zone
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