Downtown Lowell Blog: News from City of Lowell's Office of Economic Development

Office of Economic Development

Summer

2009

In This Issue

Manager's Economic Update

ARRA Offers Tax Relief for Businesses

SBA ARC Can Keep Small Business Afloat

VasoTech Offers Solutions...for Cardiovascular Diseases

Lowell Goes Platinum in MA Biotech

Hollywood on the Merrimack

Manager's Economic Update -
Even in Tough Times,
Lowell Continues to Grow

from: Bernard F. Lynch,
City Manager

As we roll into the summer months, the City of Lowell continues to make great strides on a variety of initiatives that will bring both private and public investments into the community. The national retail brand Target will open at the Plain Street Shopping Plaza in October, and on Chelmsford Street, Lowe's Home Improvement is aiming to open during the Spring of 2010. The arrival of these two major retailers will not only generate 360 new jobs in the area for a $7.5 million total yearly payroll, but it will also elevate the city's status as a regional shopping destination.

Meanwhile, the Hamilton Canal District plans to break ground this season. Infrastructure construction has already begun on site and Phase I, which includes the creation of 130 affordably-priced live/work/sell artist housing units within the Appleton Mills, will be underway later this Summer. Following on its heels will be the redevelopment of the Freudenberg Building, a site that will provide 60,000SF of commercial space. The state Division of Capital Asset Management has begun work on the $175 million state judicial center and site work, including demolition of some existing buildings which is now underway. Some businesses have already shown an interest in relocating or expanding to this area, which only further demonstrates that this project will help Lowell continue to create important opportunities for growth and development in the years to come.

Although the housing market has contracted on a national scale, Lowell continues to make significant progress with the conversion of vacant mills. In the downtown area, nearly 200 apartments within the Lawrence Mills complex are receiving final touches before becoming available for lease this fall. The construction of 65 units in the Hamilton Mills on Jackson Street is also slated to begin this Fall. The addition of these projects reflects the city's continued commitment to making Lowell a "lifetime" city.

In addition to the development projects, Lowell has focused its attention on sustainable practices. Recently the city received a Platinum BioReady rating from the Massachusetts Biotechnology Council and MassEcon. This top designation should help the city see further expansion of its green technology and environmental engineering companies. Lowell has also been allocated an energy efficient block grant from the federal government. This money will go not only toward making government buildings more energy efficient, but it will also help our community address important conservation measures needed in this 21st century.
Even in spite of our national economic situation, Lowell has flourished. The large range of economic development projects has helped launch the city into a far stronger position than many of its peer communities. This should serve as a promising indicator that Lowell is and will continue to be a great place to live, work, and play.

ARRA Offers Tax Relief
for Businesses

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009, through changes in IRS regulations, is offering businesses newly-expanded work opportunity tax credits and a carry back for net operating loss for a taxable year. These options benefit small businesses in the city of Lowell by reducing their overall tax burden.

The work opportunity tax credit (WOTC) is a tax savings to businesses that hire workers from any of 12 targeted groups.Most recently added to the list are unemployed veterans and "disconnected youth" (to see other target groups go to IRS.gov). Businesses that wish to claim work opportunity tax credit (WOTC) for eligible unemployed veterans and unskilled younger workers hired during the first part of 2009 have until August 17 to request the certification required for those workers, according to the Internal Revenue Service. If any of the unemployed veterans or unskilled younger workers begin work anytime in 2009 or 2010 they may qualify for the credit, but certification by the state workforce agency is required. To find out more information about what qualifies an unemployed veteran and unskilled younger worker and to request the newly-revised Form 8850 go to www.IRS.gov.

Another recently added option is the carry back for eligible businesses. The taxpayer of an eligible small business can elect to carry back a net operating loss (NOL) for a taxable year ending after 2007, for a period of 3, 4, or 5 years instead of the normal 2 years. This can be accomplished by attaching a statement of the 2008 NOL to the taxpayers' original income tax return for the taxable year or by claiming the NOL carry back on the appropriate form.

For more information about the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and on these particular options visit the Internal Revenue Service at www.IRS.gov.

SBA ARC Can Keep
Small Business Afloat

Business owners ask how the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act is helping the small business community. What they may not know is that the U.S. Small Business Administration have restructured their existing financial assistance programs, and more recently, have added new initiatives. Now small businesses have the opportunity to apply for a new loan called America's Recovery Capital to help keep their doors open and return to profitability.

Beginning June 15, 2009 small businesses could apply for the deferred-payment "ARC" loan, which offers up to $35,000 to established and viable businesses that need short-term financial help. This loan is not intended for start-up businesses. ARC loans are 100 percent guaranteed by the SBA and no SBA fees are included. The loan is distributed over a period of up to six months and is used for payments of principal and interest for existing, qualifying small business debt. It allows businesses to redirect their cash flow from making loan payments to investing into their businesses.

With the help of the SBA, small businesses do not have to begin repayment until 12 months after the final disbursement and have up to five years to pay back to the commercial lenders. If you are a small business that would be interested in applying for an ARC loan your first step is to contact your lender who will verify your eligiblity. Some questions that may be asked are:

Has your small business been in operation for at least two years?
Do you have financial statements demonstrating your business was profitable in one of the last three years?
Is your business suffering an immediate financial hardship? For example, are you experiencing:

Declining sales and revenues;
Difficulty in making loan payments on existing debt;
Difficulty in paying employees;
Difficulty in purchasing materials, supplies, or inventory; and/or difficulty in paying rent and/or other operating expenses.

If you believe that you qualify and would like more information on the ARC loan program, go to www.SBA.gov.

VasoTech Inc.,
Offers Solutions
for Cardiovascular Diseases

VasoTech Inc., an innovative startup stent company located in the city of Lowell has come a long way since it set up shop in founder and cardiologist Tim Wu's garage. Wu's company is in development of a new state-of-the-art drug-eluting stent known as PowerStent. This next generation stent is composed of three elements, a cobalt chromium stent, a biodegradable polymer called BioDe and potent combination of two anti-restenosis drugs. This medical device is expected to eliminate the problems that current stents can cause in cardiovascular disease patients.
Tim Wu - VasoTech