Benefits and Tools

As one of six Next Michigan Development Corporations in the state, Northern Nexus offers a set of economic development tools and incentives that focus on attracting businesses or expanding current businesses that utilize multimodal commerce, meaning a business must use two or more modes of transportation to ship its products.   These tools include:

  • Grant real and personal property tax abatements
     
  • Establish a multi-jurisdictional local development financing authority (LDFA) with the ability to utilize state tax capture, with the approval of the State Treasurer, for public infrastructure improvements
     
  • Designate tax-free renaissance zones as allowed by the State of Michigan

These tools may only be applied in the approved Northern Nexus Development District.  A map of the Northern Nexus Development District is here.

What is an Eligible Next Michigan Business?

A business must be an “Eligible Next Michigan Business” (ENMB) to qualify for benefits of Northern Nexus. Under the Michigan Renaissance Zone Act (Act 376 of 1996), the Interlocal Agreement, the Michigan Economic Growth Authority Act (1995 PA 24), the Plant Rehabilitation and Industrial Development Districts Act (Act 198 of 1974), and the General Property Tax Act (Act 206 of 1893), an ENMB is a business that meets one of the following five standards. (For the purposes of these five standards, “multimodal commerce” is defined as commerce that involves two or more of air, rail, road, and sea as modes of transportation.)

  • The shipment of tangible personal property via multimodal commerce
     
  • A supply chain business providing a majority of its services to businesses engaged in the shipment of tangible personal property, including inventory, via multimodal commerce
     
  • A manufacturing or assembly facility receiving a majority of its production components via multimodal commerce
     
  • A manufacturing or assembly facility shipping a majority of products via multimodal commerce
     
  • Light manufacturing or assembly facility that packages, kits, labels, or customizes products and ships those products via multimodal commerce

The Property Tax Abatement and Renaissance Zone Guidelines for Northern Nexus, including Criteria, Applications, Score Sheets and Model Agreements, are here.