Opponents who sued to stop a $400 million grain elevator project in St. John the Baptist Parish now argue that a financial arrangement with the Port of Louisiana allows the developer to avoid $200 million in local tax liabilities in violation of state law.
The Descendants Project, which formed three years ago and is suing to stop the Greenfield Louisiana LLC development in state court, contends a payment-in-lieu-of-taxes agreement will shield Greenfield from paying $200 million in taxes over three decades. The port owns the land proposed for the grain elevator but leased it to Greenfield.
“Louisiana’s Civil Code treats such a transaction as a ‘simulation’ and not an actual transfer of property,” William Most, the attorney representing The Descendants Project, said in a December letter to the parish’s assessor, Lucien Gauff III. “For that reason, the Greenfield/Port agreement should not have the effect of exempting the property from ad valorem taxes.”
Greenfield, however, sees the project as helping to expand the local economy, providing jobs for area residents and actually increasing the flow of local tax revenues.
“As Greenfield has shown, the project will bring in $2 million annually to an area that is currently only contributing $30,000 a year in property taxes to the parish and state,” Greenfield Chief Financial Officer Kyle Egbert said in a statement emailed to the Louisiana Record. “The new grain export facility will net over $300 million in tax revenue over the next 30 years to benefit the community, far more than if the project were not completed.”
Opponents of the project have been spreading inaccurate information about fiscal issues related to the grain elevator development, according to Egbert.
“It is unfortunate that a small number of project opponents continue to spread false information and use legal procedures, which the tax assessor's legal team referred to as 'out of line,' to try and thwart this project, which is widely supported, would create jobs and benefit the community at large,” he said.
Other tax benefits would result from payroll taxes generated by new jobs and business activities, providing millions more dollars to local schools, road improvements and other local services such as public libraries, according to Egbert.
An analysis by Greater New Orleans Inc. a regional economic development nonprofit group, found that the grain elevator project would lead to $6.2 million in new tax revenue each year from employment during the construction phase and $8.4 million annually from employment after the project opens.
The Descendants Project’s lawsuit argues that the project would produce particulate matter and dust containing mold, rodent feces and other pollutants, raising health and air-quality concerns.