Niagara Falls hotel group rescinds request for tax concession
Industry association maintains providing support to businesses is ‘in everyone’s interest’
Niagara Falls Canada Hotel Association has rescinded its request to city council asking for “some type of concession” on property tax obligations for one year due to the impact COVID-19 continues to have on the industry.
Doug Birrell, executive director of the association, made the request in an Oct. 16 letter, which also asked for “much more” time to be able to meet these obligations. Council referred the request to staff for review.
In a subsequent letter, dated Nov. 2, Birrell withdrew the request.
“I had some very beneficial discussions with staff regarding alternate mechanisms available on this issue,” he wrote.
“Subsequently, we are withdrawing this request. However, I would ask council to provide whatever leniency it can to all constituents and businesses who may be incurring temporary financial hardships during this COVID-19 crisis, within its authority regarding property tax payments. We also ask that the city endeavours to avoid any increase in property taxes that would affect any Niagara Falls constituents during this time.”
Birrell said providing support to businesses and protecting jobs in Niagara Falls is “in everyone’s interest.”
“In our specific case, we have been advocating with all levels of government to provide assistance to support the hospitality industry and the 40,000 employees who depend on our industry within the Niagara region.”
Finance director Tiffany Clark has said the city cannot grant concessions solely to one specific group.
After the Niagara Falls Review published an Oct. 23 online story about the hotel association’s original request, several residents and
businesses chimed in on social media saying council should not grant concessions to one or certain segments of the population, arguing the pandemic has impacted everyone in some way.
Clark said the municipality has been sending out a response to residents inquiring about the subject, hoping to “put minds at ease” that council cannot grant the hotel association’s request, “strictly as requested.”
“Per the Municipal Act, all tax groups must be treated the same and as such, council does not have the authority to grant concessions solely to hotels/ motels,” she said.
Clark said if there are any future concessions given for 2021 — in addition to what the city has and continues to offer all taxpayers since the beginning of COVID-19 — they would be applied to all tax groups equally.
In an interview, Birrell said neither he, nor the hotel association, intended the original request to be exclusive to their industry, although some in the public may have perceived it that way.
Birrell said in discussions with city staff, “they have shown us a more pragmatic way of approaching this.”
“There are mechanisms in place to look at having other entities review the values of tax that are being applied at any time,” he said.
“(Staff) just took us through a good study, a primer on how to do this.”
For example, Birrell said the federal and provincial governments are assessing ways to provide various types of pandemic relief programs to residents and businesses based on need.
“Some areas are hit harder than others — some industries are hit harder than others, so … provincial and federal political authorities are taking a look at hard-hit entities,” Birrell explained. “In the case of tourism, tourism is hard hit right across the province and hard hit right across the country. There have been some discussions on short-term relief of some nature for tourism right across the country and in our case, provincial.”