For Immediate Release: Thursday, June 29, 2017
County lawmakers praise new ‘Enterprise Zone’
for Burtonsville/Briggs Chaney
Designation provides property / income tax credits to businesses
that create jobs, make capital investments
Burtonsville, Md., June 28, 2017—District 5 Councilmember Tom Hucker and the District 14
State Delegation, which comprises Senator Craig Zucker and Delegates Anne Kaiser, Eric
Luedtke and Pam Queen, today praised the Maryland Department of Commerce’s decision to
approve the Burtonsville/Briggs Chaney area of East County as one of five new “Enterprise
Zones” in the State.
The Enterprise Zone program, established in 1982, provides real property
and state income tax credits to businesses that create jobs and make capital investments.
The new East County Enterprise Zone encompasses 230 acres along U.S. 29. The zone includes
the Burtonsville Crossing Shopping Center, the Burtonsville Town Square and the Briggs
Chaney Market Plaza.
“The County Council has been working very hard to encourage new investment in the business
districts in the Burtonsville and Briggs Chaney area, and to find new ways to rejuvenate this
historically underserved and financially challenged part of the County,” said Councilmember
Hucker. “ This designation will not only encourage redevelopment, but will also help drive down
the high unemployment in the area by offering incentives to businesses that create new jobs and
hire economically disadvantaged employees .”
Councilmember Hucker joined with the District 14 State Delegation this year to call on the
Department of Commerce to create this Enterprise Zone.
“This new Enterprise Zone designation will grow jobs and support small businesses in
Burtonsville and Briggs Chaney.” Del. Eric Luedtke said on behalf of the delegation. “It is a key
part of the economic renaissance we are working to achieve. Securing the zone is a great
example of effective partnership between the Montgomery County Council and state legislators
who have both been advocating for it.”
The Department of Commerce designates the state’s Enterprise Zones, while local governments
administer them. Businesses operating within an Enterprise Zone may be eligible for a tax credit
toward their state income tax filings based on the number of jobs created. They also may be
eligible for a tax credit on their local real property taxes based upon their overall capital
investment into a property. This new East County Enterprise Zone will be the fifth current zone
in the County.
Enterprise Zones have been successful when combined with “large-scale investments in public
facilities, streetscaping improvements [and] development of public spaces,” according to a report
last year by the County Office of Legislative Oversight. In Silver Spring, for example, more than
85 businesses took advantage of the incentives, creating 1,375 jobs during the 10-year life of the
Silver Spring Enterprise Zone. The County hopes to replicate that success in the East County
through large-scale investments in bus rapid transit and the proposed redevelopment of the
County Park & Ride Lot in Burtonsville.