By John Francis, Bruce Peninsula Press
After much discussion and controversy over the last six months, Municipality of Northern Bruce Peninsula (MNBP) Council will decide on December 11 whether or not to extend the Municipal Accommodation Tax (MAT) to include hotels, motels, campgrounds and B&Bs. The Treasurer’s Report in the Agenda for Council’s December 11 Meeting estimates that the expansion of the MAT would generate between $350,000 and $400,000 per year in tax revenue for the municipality.
The enabling legislation (Bill 127, Stronger, Healthier Ontario Act, passed in 2017) includes an amendment to the Municipal Act (2001) which “enables local municipalities to impose a tax on the purchase of transient accommodation”. (Many people wonder why municipalities don’t extend the tax to cover restaurants as well; the answer is simple — the enabling legislation does not permit that, it limits the tax to overnight accommodation.)
If passed, MNBP’s MAT extension would address a complaint council members hear constantly from ratepayers — they want tourism to pay for tourism. Proponents of the tax extension point out that it is not a tax on the businesses themselves, but rather on their customers. Opponents of the tax extension complain that they — and their customers — are already paying too many taxes.
The provincial enabling legislation requires that MAT revenues be shared 50-50 with a tourism organization, who will use the revenue to promote and facilitate tourism. MNBP’s designated recipient for 50% of the MAT revenues is Tobermory Chamber of Commerce.
The Treasurer’s Report includes the full text of the Bylaw and recommends that the Bylaw “be presented and considered for passage on January 8, 2024”. The full report and bylaw can be found online in the Agenda for MNBP Council’s December 11 Meeting.
Paid Parking — Status Quo Recommended for 2024
MNBP’s November 27 Council Meeting Agenda included a Report from Chief Bylaw Enforcement Officer Carol Hopkins. She recommended only one significant change to MNBP’s parking system — addition of a reservation system for the parking spaces at the end of Big Tub Road. The ParkPass reservation system has been very effective at the McCurdy Street parking lot in Lion’s Head and the Little Cove parking lot near Tobermory. Coupled with good signage, the reservation system has dramatically reduced traffic to and from the lots. The Big Tub reservation system would be a one-year pilot project to see if it brings the same benefits it did elsewhere.
The parking report states that Tobermory Chamber of Commerce has requested that paid parking be cancelled after Labour Day. The report includes estimates for the amount of revenue that would be lost ($100,357) and the offsetting savings in enforcement and other expenses ($22,578). The net loss of revenue was thus estimated at $77,779.
Mayor Milt McIver noted that even if the municipality was able to reduce the bylaw enforcement costs after Labour Day, there would still be garbage to pick up and washrooms to clean. CBO Hopkins promised that final figures for 2023 would be available soon.
The Parking Report can be found on the municipal website at LetsTalkNBP; public comments will be accepted until December 27.
Affordable Housing Numbers
As Bruce County was in the process of implementing a Development Charge, County Council realized it would be counter-productive to apply it to low-cost housing. This required them to agree on a definition of “Affordable Housing”.
MNBP opposed the imposition of a Development Charge (why add $7,800 to the cost of a new build to pay for services we don’t get) but was in the minority. MNBP also had misgivings about using a dollar figure to define “Affordable Housing”, given the extreme prices that have prevailed here since 2021. Mayor McIver, MNBP’s representative on County Council, was able to insert a clause into the final bylaw defining affordable housing in MNBP as anything under 1,000 square feet.
A Chief Building Official Report in the Agenda for Council’s December 11 Meeting shows that this will be an important clause. Recent communication from Bruce County’s Commissioner of Community Development set out the county’s definitions of “Affordable Housing”. The CBO reports that “Based on the County’s definition – housing below the purchase price of $399,100 and below a rental price of $1,324 would be considered affordable.”
It should be noted that few — if any — new builds in MNBP would fit those criteria. That 1,000-square-foot clause could save a lot of people $7,800.
Volunteer Recognition Day
MNBP’s annual Volunteer Recognition Day will be held April 17, 2024 at 3:00pm at the Rotary Hall in Lion’s Head.
