Even if the county has the right to make the decision, Wellington North councillors do not believe the township should be dragged into the realm of funding social housing.
A report by Wellington North Treasurer John Jeffrey noted that Wellington County was following its own policy when it created tax exemptions regarding Matrix Affordable Housing for the Disadvantaged in downtown Arthur – even though that decision directly affected lower tier taxation.
The recent county bylaw exempts the residential portion of the Matrix building from county, township, and school taxes.
Jeffrey wrote, “This exemption was intended to satisfy county funding commitments made in 2003 when the project was started.”
The issue is that Wellington North was never involved in the process of a decision that directly affects it.
“Wellington North was never consulted about this exemption nor did the township ever agree to it. However it appears that it is not necessary that the county consult with the township at all before passing a bylaw of this nature,” Jeffrey wrote.
Part of the proposal included capital grants of $130,000 but also a tax exemption value of $100,000.
Jeffrey wrote that county staff indicated the tax deferral approach provides a deferral of the benefit over 15 years instead of providing a grant up front. He wrote the provision of grants at a county level spreads the costs across the entire municipality.
A tax exemption from county taxes does much the same thing.
“However, exempting township property taxes directs that portion of the cost to the township of Wellington North specifically. The township has had no involvement in this project nor should it, as their mandate does not include the provision of social housing. The funding of this type of housing should be borne by the county as a whole.”
Jeffrey’s report noted that other “affordable housing” projects in Wellington North are not exempt from property taxation, but are taxed at the full multi-residential tax rate.
He told councillors that night that Wellington County’s decision “is not a particularly good one for Wellington North and may set a precedent.”
Councillor Ross Chaulk said that if the county had made a cash donation, the overall cost would be shared by all seven municipalities, but this way Wellington North is paying a big chunk of this.
“I see this as unfair, considering we did not want Matrix to begin with.”
Yake said his main concern was the lack of consultation and why the county had not at least brought the issue to the municipality’s attention.
Jeffrey said the only reason he could conceive of is “because they didn’t have to.”
“It’s quite a way to operate,” said Yake. He added Wellington North has three representatives at county council, but the municipality found out about this only a few weeks ago.
He asked Mayor Mike Broomhead if the municipality’s concerns would be supported by its local representatives.
Broomhead said that an official letter should be sent to the local county representatives, and that he would contact them after that.
Jeffrey noted the full impact of the county decision has yet to be determined since the Matrix property has yet to be assessed by the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation.
Council later passed a resolution asking that the county repeal its bylaw providing the tax exemptions in its current format and instead provide the equivalent assistance through the grant portion of the municipal incentives identified for the housing project.
