Incentives for Buckingham HQ?

The city is taking a second look at a tax abatement request for the historic Stokely-Van Camp building at 941 N. Meridian St. Developer Buckingham Cos. bought the 114,000-square-foot building in February 2007 and began a $2.5-million renovation. The firm won a letter of support for a tax abatement from former Mayor Bart Peterson’s office but the deal was never finalized. With much of the renovation work now done, Buckingham has revived its request for an 8-year abatement worth about $115,500. The planning department pulled the item from last week’s MDC meeting at the last minute so Mayor Greg Ballard and his staff could have a look. A staff report on the abatement says it would create 18 new jobs and retain about 310. A key question: whether all the jobs will be located at the downtown building, a city spokesman said. (Photo/DIG-B)