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Doing Business In Princess Anne
The Town of Princess Anne offers both a friendly business climate and an excellent quality of life. The town government is committed to supporting local business and refers interested companies to a variety of incentives, which are discussed in greater detail in subsequent sections of this business guide. These very attractive incentives include tax credits under the following programs: Enterprise Zone, One Maryland Tax Credit, and the Job Creation Tax Credit. This website also provides information on how to start a business in Princess Anne and how to give your existing business the opportunity to thrive given all of the local benefits and advantages of locating here.
Another very important incentive is the willingness of the town government to work with both new and existing businesses in
order to ensure that they are successful. The Town works to expedite business procedures are done in a thoroughly professional manner. One important example of this is the Washington Inn and Tavern, formerly known as the Washington Hotel, at 11784 Somerset Avenue, which has been renovated in a partnership with private investors and the Town. The Town of Princess Anne sought and received State grants to augment the private investment attracted to this project. This public – private partnership is essential to a healthy business climate. The hotel already is the anchor of a revitalized downtown Princess Anne benefiting merchants, citizens, and visitors.
Main Street Princess Anne , which is financially supported by the town government and grant funds, undertakes a series of activities to promote the downtown, including assisting with façade improvement, publicizing the businesses through social media and the local press, supporting meaningful events, implementing heritage tourism initiatives which will attract visitors, and working to analyze the business space in the downtown and plan for the creative and profitable reuse of that space.
The Town is also a Sustainable Community, which makes it eligible for special set-asides of state funding. Princess Anne has been successful in obtaining grant monies every year for activities to benefit the downtown. This includes street work and the improvement of the buildings in the area.
The Princess Anne Industrial Park, which has available fully cleared lots of between 3 and 6 acres, is fully connected to water, sewer, and broadband. Rail service is available adjacent to the park. Sites are marketed on a national basis. Northrop Grumman moved into a spec building funded by the state of Maryland. Prospective businesses will find that the cost of these sites is competitive compared to other locations and that there is a large workforce with incentives from the state for training.
The Town of Princess Anne offers both a friendly business climate and an excellent quality of life and the town government is committed to supporting local business and refers interested companies to a variety of incentives. These very attractive incentives include tax credits under the following programs: Enterprise Zone, One Maryland Tax Credit, and the Job Creation Tax Credit. The Somerset County Economic Development Commission offers low-interest loan funds. The Princess Anne Industrial Park has parcels ready for development.
Facade Grants: The Town offers a façade improvement program, which has been funded for the past several years with monies from the State of Maryland’s Community Legacy Program. Downtown property owners must fill out an application and provide supporting information showing the need for the assistance. This program can provide up to 100% funding for exterior work in accordance with the
state’s guidelines.
Infrastructure Improvements: The Town is also designated a Sustainable Community, which makes it eligible for special set-asides of state funding. Princess Anne has been successful in obtaining grant monies every year for activities to benefit the downtown, including street work and the improvement of the buildings in the area.
Enterprise Zone Tax Credits: Princess Anne has a 1,297-acre Enterprise Zone, which includes historic downtown Princess Anne, the University of Maryland Eastern Shore, and the Princess Anne Industrial Park. Businesses which locate or expand in these areas will get two types of significant tax credits, income tax and property tax.
Income Tax Credits:
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The General Income Tax Credit – The one-time $1,000 or $1,500 tax credit for each qualified new employee in an Enterprise Zone.
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Income Tax Credit for Economically Disadvantaged Employees – A three-year tax credit for each qualified new economically disadvantaged employee.
Not every new employee hired by a business located in an Enterprise Zone is eligible for one of the Enterprise Zone income tax credits, see "Doing Business in Princess Anne" brochure for more details or contact Somerset Economic Development Commission.
Property Tax Credit: Businesses in an Enterprise Zone also get a ten- year tax credit against local real property taxes on a portion of real property expansion, renovation or capital improvement. Contact the Somerset County Economic Development Commissioned for more details: by telephone at 410-651-0500 or by email at EDC@somersetmd.us.
One Maryland Tax Credit: Businesses that invest in an economic development project in Somerset County and create at least 25 new full-time jobs may qualify for up to $5.5 million in state income tax credits. Project costs include those major capital expenditures related to land acquisition, building construction, rehabilitation, installation and purchasing of equipment.
Business may qualify for a state income tax credit of up to $500,000 of start-up costs. Contact the Somerset County Economic Development Department at 410-651-0500.
Small Business Expansion Program: The Somerset County Economic Development Commission operates a local revolving loan program, referred to as the Small Business Expansion Program (SBEP). The SBEP was established in 1984 to assist local businesses to obtain funding for their expansion needs. Financial guidance and assistance will also be available from the Small Business Development Center at Salisbury University, the Rural Development Center at the University of Maryland.
The Main Street Program: This program offers assistance to downtown businesses, including assisting with façade improvement, publicizing the businesses through social media and the local press, supporting meaningful events, implementing heritage tourism initiatives which will attract visitors, and working to analyze the business space in the downtown and plan for the creative and profitable reuse of that space.
