A Government Property Lease Excise Tax development incentive agreement between the developers of VAI Resort and Mattel Adventure Park and the City of Glendale will probably end up before voters.
Opposition group Worker Power Institute has submitted more than 5,500 petition signatures to refer the GPLET agreements to a referendum, alleging concerns over property tax incentives for luxury developments and process transparency.
Worker Power Institute was the group responsible for referring the Arizona Coyotes’ Tempe Entertainment District proposal to a public vote, where it was ultimately defeated.
WPI says Glendale and Maricopa County have certified their petition submission has met the required signatures to appear on the ballot. The controversy concerns an updated development agreement between the City and VAI Resort. That agreement will be reviewed in the Aug. 22 Glendale City Council meeting.
Under GPLET incentives, a portion of the project could receive tax breaks for 25 years. The exact amount is unknown since the agreement has not been finalized. The previous agreement with the development’s former owners had a valuation of almost $30M in exchange for $240M in tax revenue over the term of the incentives.
Under the updated agreement between Glendale and VAI, GPLET agreements cannot be implemented until construction is 90% complete. VAI Resort and Mattel Adventure Park are approximately 40% complete at the moment and are expected to open next year.
It is unknown what impacts a voter rejection of the incentive package could have on the developments. (Source)