The State
of Missouri has multiple tax credit programs to provide incentives
for investments and charitable contributions. This column
features examples of how the various Missouri state tax credit
programs benefit the St. Louis region.
Name St. Louis’ most historically significant arch. That’s
easy, right? Wrong. Long before the Gateway Arch dominated
the St. Louis skyline, it was not one, but three arches that
brought tourists to St. Louis. The construction of the Eads
Bridge, supported by three beautifully arched steel spans,
was one of the greatest engineering feats of the 19th century.
The Eads Bridge was more than just a technological wonder,
or the railroad’s gateway to the West, it stood and still
stands as one of the city’s most important landmarks. But
as time passed, methods of transportation changed and the
city grew. Eads Bridge suffered from neglect. However, through
the St. Louis Confluence Greenway Project’s use of Missouri
State tax credits, the Eads Bridge will once again be one
of the city’s most popular arteries.
Mark
Twain once wrote about the Mississippi River, “Ten Thousand
River Commissions cannot tame that lawless stream,” but James
Eads did the next best thing. His 1874 bridge was the first
to stretch across the Mississippi, and became the major thoroughfare
for railroad traffic to the West. The bridge’s massive spans,
which needed to be more than 50 feet tall and 500 feet wide
to accommodate river traffic, were considered impossible by
engineers, but Eads’ genius prevailed. His mammoth steel structure
took more than seven years and $10,000,000 to finish, but
it stood as a testament to a city on the rise.
As St.
Louis grew, so did commuter traffic, and advancements in modern
transportation eventually created a need for automobiles to
cross the Mississippi. So the top deck of Eads Bridge, which
was originally intended to carry horse-drawn vehicles and
pedestrians, began carrying cars and trucks and until 1991,
when that deck was closed, carried daily traffic of 3,000
to 4,000 cars. Since 1993 the only commuter traffic on the
Eads Bridge has been the St. Louis MetroLink, retro-fitted
for the bridge’s lower level. But now, as a part of Trailnet
Inc.’s Confluence Greenway project, this famous gateway may
once again be bustling with pedestrian traffic.
The Confluence
Greenway project is a 40-mile riverside park stretching on
both sides of the Mississippi River from the Gateway Arch
to the confluence of the Missouri and Illinois rivers. The
project includes renovations to the Old Chain of Rocks Bridge,
a 12-mile trail for biking and pedestrian use linking the
Gateway Arch and north St. Louis, and the restoration of the
top deck of the Eads Bridge for a pedestrian promenade.
Awarded
$1.7 million in State tax credits under the Missouri Distressed
Communities Act, Trailnet has used a delicate public-private
partnership to fund the Confluence Greenway development. To
finance the renovation of Eads Bridge as well as the other
components of the greenway, Trailnet offers donors of $10,000
or more 50 percent credits applicable to their Missouri taxes.
The credits may be applied to Missouri State Income tax in
three past years or throughout the next 10 years and these
credits may also be bought or sold. To the extent that donors
have excess tax credits, they can sell them to Firstar Bank’s
Missouri Tax Credit Clearinghouse.
According to Trailnet Executive Director Ted Curtis the use
of tax credits benefits everyone, “The intent of the tax credit
program was to get more money to places where the state thought
it was important. People really believe in this project.”
Modeled after similar projects in other cities, the renovation
of the Eads Bridge will bring pedestrian traffic back to the
city’s core. “It’s really about bringing people back to the
Mississippi,” Curtis adds.
In addition to cash contributions to the project, Trailnet
also accepts other assets. Real Estate property, securities,
and even pre-owned cars are all accepted as contributions.
Such donations are not only philanthropic, but sometimes profitable.
While a cash donation to the project typically recovers 70
to 75 percent, other donations, particularly of appreciated
stock, can significantly increase the return. Curtis is convinced
that using such alternative forms of contribution may be unconventional,
but that others will soon catch on. “The St. Louis business
community is just getting smart in learning to use these.”
The re-opening of Eads Bridge marks more than just the addition
of another city thoroughfare, it is the revitalization of
one of the city’s greatest landmarks. As Zack Boyers, assistant
vice president of Firstar’s Community Development Corporation
states, “Eads Bridge is a part of our community’s fabric.
Its successful restoration will become another example of
the great power of Missouri State’s Tax credit programs to
make significant projects come to life throughout the City
of St. Louis.”
Scott Hall is an associate of DFC Group Inc., tax credit
consultants to the Firstar Tax Credit Clearinghouse.
