Downtown hotel project snags $4M more in tax credits

YOUNGSTOWN

The proposed $25.5 million project to convert the downtown Stambaugh Building into a 120-room hotel not only has a $5 million state tax credit, but also a $4 million federal tax credit.

Because the 12-story, 107-year-old structure at 44 E. Federal St. is on the National Park Service’s Register of Historic Places, the building is automatically eligible for that $4 million tax credit, said Dominic C. Marchionda, director of operations and strategic planning for the NYO Property Group, which owns Stambaugh and numerous other downtown buildings.

It’s been on the register since 1980.

“Without these credits, these [historic] buildings that allow us to pay homage to our industrial past don’t stand a chance of being an integral part of our favorable future,” he said.

The $9 million state and federal tax credits are the most given to any structure in the Mahoning Valley.

“While all of us from the Valley know what an amazing place Youngstown is, and see all the positive change taking place each day, Youngstown is unfortunately still considered as a tertiary market to traditional lenders,” Marchionda said. “Therefore, you’ll often find a dynamic and layered financing stack behind historic preservation and adaptive reuse projects. We don’t anticipate this to be any different, but luckily, it’s not our first rodeo, and we are prepared to partner with local and regional lenders to reintroduce this building to the community.”

Read more about the project plans in Friday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.