The Allentown Neighborhood Improvement Zone Development Authority will be giving some additional tax money to both the state and city.
The board voted Wednesday to split almost $2 million — $1.8 million for the state and $99,405 for Allentown. The revenue is on top of $22 million that was returned in the spring.
That $22 million figure represents the amount of state tax revenue downtown Allentown was generating before the creation of the NIZ, the city’s unique tax subsidy zone. In other words, the governments received $1.98 million more tax dollars from downtown in 2024 than they did in 2011.
For fiscal year 2023, ANIZDA had $9.3 million in surplus tax revenue. In 2022, it was $2.6 million, while 2021 saw a $7.1 million surplus after none in 2020.
ANIZDA Executive Director Steve Bamford said the amount was lower this year because more money was allocated to debt service on developer projects in April.
ANIZDA reported that month it generated a record $103.5 million in tax revenue last year, about a .6% increase from the $102.9 million generated in 2023.
Looking ahead, ANIZDA’s estimated operating expenses for 2026 is anticipated to be $1.13 million, with a projected surplus of $21,177.
The funding for that comes from the PPL Center rental fee of $150,000 and fees from developers, which are expected to be $988,734, an increase from last year. Cash expenditures are expected to be $1.11 million.
