Just as construction of sound stages in phase one of the $100 million Lionsgate project nears completion in downtown Yonkers, the city’s Industrial Development Authority granted preliminary approval on Oct. 28 for public subsidies for another phase.
Hudson View Associates wants to build another soundstage, offices and storage and mill space at iPark Hudson next to the Yonkers train station.
Hudson Studios at iPark is being developed by National Resources, of Greenwich, and Great Point Capital, of London, to be leased to Lions Gate Entertainment Corp.
An “explosion of content” for streaming services such as Netflix and traditional movie studios is driving the demand for more studios, Joe Cotter of National Resources told the board.
Simultaneously, he said, production companies are coming back to the New York area “where much of the talent is based.”
He said the demand has spurred a race between cities in the region that are offering tax breaks to lure movie companies.
While the purpose of the meeting was to grant preliminary approval for subsidies and authorize scheduling of a public hearing, the board did not publicly discuss any details of the requested financial assistance or disclose a cost-benefit analysis of the project.
According to the developers’ application, the second phase will cost $60 million. But they are asking for tax exemptions on $75 million for the mortgage and the goods and services. The subsidies work out to about $3.1 million in exemptions for sales and use taxes and a mortgage recording tax.
The developers have also requested property tax abatement for 15 years but did not include the property tax schedule with the financial assistance application.
The project is expected to create 400 construction jobs, according to the application, and from 265 to 420 full-time equivalent jobs.
It will also generate $65 million in additional economic activity, the application states, as companies relocate to Yonkers to provide additional services.
Cotter said more phases are being planned, and when it’s all done, he projected, the movie-making complex and supporting companies will have created 1,000 to 2,000 new jobs.
