Tourist centre a bad deal for city

Editor: The more one educates oneself on the workings between Tourism Kelowna and the City of Kelowna council, one draws stronger conclusions on how irresponsible this city council has become in managing taxpayers money and public lands.

The research that is being conducted is starting to expose the real costs associated with the goings on at city hall with Tourism Kelowna and you can bet come July 4 when your property tax payment clears, quite an inconspicuous portion will be allocated to Tourism Kelowna.

I am referring to direct and indirect cost to taxpayers and tourists through poorly negotiated land leases, maintenance costs, opportunity costs, infrastructure upgrades and hotel taxation.

One simple example is the hotel tax assessed to hotel rooms specifically for Tourism Kelowna. All tax money collected is remitted to Tourism Kelowna. The City of Kelowna is Tourism Kelowna’s tax collector. This tourism tax has recently increased from two to three per cent. The additional tax raise for Tourism Kelowna by city council is supposedly needed to help promote Kelowna tourism to other parts of the country.

Is that really the best way to get tourists to our city? Yes, tax them. right.

On April 1, Tourism Kelowna, began to realize a minimum increase of $900,000 a year to approximately $2.8 million per year from the hotel tax.

This is over and above the income generated through fees and sales to their clients and that’s not even including the additional amounts the Kelowna taxpayers are going to give to this organization.

It is conceivable the tax demand of the city could have been reduced by $2.8 million, resulting in lower property taxes (quite possibly by two or more) if the hotel tax went to the city.

Alternatively, the funds could be used to develop the Cedar Avenue park.

However, I would get rid of that hotel tax period. Taxing tourists to promote tourism is plain stupid and so is taxing property to give to a private marketing group.

If the City of Kelowna received fair market value for the property lease, improvements, infrastructure upgrades and maintenance the city will bestow on Tourism Kelowna, the future tax demand could have been reduced by upwards of $15 million, by some estimates. Considering the tax demand for the City of Kelowna in 2017 at $127 million, Kelowna property owners should have realized a substantial tax decrease now and in the future.

This type of mismanagement by city council only strengthens the possibility of large property tax hikes in the future as they continue to flog and lease off public lands far below market potential.

I always understood the purpose of property taxes is to provide funding for policing, emergency services, hospitals, schools, roads, sanitation, recreation, community centres, libraries, and parks. BC Assessment agrees and does not list marketing as a reason to tax properties.

In my opinion, this council knows it has been caught making a poor decision in regards to the lease of the Queensway Jetty lands and the mayor and council must rescind this ill-conceived land lease agreement with Tourism Kelowna.

And one little footnote, in the City View pamphlet enclosed with your 2017 property tax notice there is a section titled “Reducing costs, increasing revenue.” The first line states “The City of Kelowna is continually looking for new ways to reduce costs, generate revenues and maximized return on investment.”

Well, if the city figures it’s OK to lease parkland valued for 29 years for the rock bottom price of $50, or lease the paddle club property for $5,000 for seven years, we, the taxpayers are in for a real treat down the road when our future tax notices show up and there’s no new beach front to show for it.

Roberto Basso, Kelowna