Home Depot wins 15-year tax deal for appliance warehouse in Hicksville, 25 jobs to be created

Home Depot Inc., the giant building supply retailer, has been awarded 15 years of tax breaks for an appliance warehouse in Hicksville, officials said.

The Nassau County Industrial Development Agency unanimously approved a tax deal last month with a sales-tax exemption of up to $172,500 on the purchase of equipment, fixtures and furnishings for the rented warehouse at 344 Duffy Ave. Property taxes on the project will be reduced for 15 years.

The 195,610-square-foot  building has been constructed by developer Lincoln Equities Group LLC of East Rutherford, New Jersey.

Home Depot will spend $2 million to equip the facility for use as a “last-mile” distribution center, according to two sources who read an unredacted copy of the retailer's IDA aid application. Last mile refers to the final leg of a product's journey to a customer’s doorstep.

Since May, Home Depot has refused to publicly disclose its investment in the project, the average employee salary and other information that has been provided by IDA applicants since at least 2011. The retailer, with headquarters in Atlanta, redacted much of the 109-page application including the identity of the person who signed it.

Home Depot “can’t get into pay specifics because compensation varies based on position, experience and market,” company spokeswoman Margaret W. Smith said, when asked for the average salary of the 25 permanent jobs to be created.

She said Home Depot is grateful for the tax breaks: “We look forward to opening our facility and becoming part of the Hicksville community, and we appreciate our partnership with the county.”

Home Depot will use the warehouse to store and deliver appliances in the metropolitan area. It considered sites in New York City, Westchester County and elsewhere in the state, said Garrett L. Gray, the company's local real estate attorney.

At July’s IDA meeting, civic activist Kevin McKenna of Save Our Town of Oyster Bay said road improvements are needed around Hicksville warehouse because of increased truck traffic. Gray replied that the facility “will not cause any significant impact on traffic.”

IDA chairman Richard Kessel said the Home Depot project is among at least three “last-mile” distribution centers proposed for Nassau. The others are for online retailer Amazon: 2 Westbury Ave. in Carle Place and the old Cerro Wire property in Syosset. Amazon will likely seek IDA tax breaks for the latter, he said.

“What’s really exciting is Nassau County is looking at a new industry,” Kessel said. “These warehouses bring a number of jobs, both in-house and carrier delivery jobs — hundreds of them.”

By James T. Madore

james.madore@newsday.comJamesTMadore

James T. Madore writes about Long Island business news including the economy, development, and the relationship between government and business. He previously served as Albany bureau chief.