Date of publication: 27 Apr 2022 • 14 hours ago • 4 minutes reading • 56 Comments Pedestrians walk through an empty shop window on Robson Street in Vancouver. Photo by RICHARD LAM / PNG
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Vancouver Mayor Kennedy Stewart is calling for a vacancy tax that will penalize owners who leave shop windows empty.
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On Tuesday, the council gave the green light to Stewart to pursue the idea of a store-based license tax with the provincial government. Similar to the 2018 vacancy tax, the city needs the county to introduce legislation to change the Vancouver Charter before it can impose a store license tax. Stewart said some neighborhoods in the city are struggling with job vacancy rates of 20 percent or more. Boarded windows reduce the vibrancy and security of a neighborhood, he said. Pedestrians walk past an empty shop window on Robson Street in Vancouver, BC, September 6, 2020. Photo by RICHARD LAM / PNG The tax would chase speculators who buy commercial real estate and leave them empty, based on an increase in the value of the real estate and then overthrow them. A tax, if done correctly, would stop speculation, boost the supply of commercial space and possibly even reduce rental prices, he said.
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“We have to put an end to this kind of speculation. “If we do it right, it would mean lower rents for small businesses.” Stewart said the vast majority of commercial property owners are good landlords who are actively seeking to fill the property. That is not the purpose of the tax, he said. “The good ones do not need to worry. They have to check a few blocks each year… to say “here is my rent, here are my ads, I was trying to fill this space.” Tonight I asked the Municipality to join me calling the province to investigate an empty store tax. Just like homes, commercial real estate has skyrocketed in value, yet many remain vacant. It was no surprise that the same people who opposed the vacancy tax also opposed it. # Vanpoli pic.twitter.com/oCpNifhOla – Kennedy Stewart (@kennedystewart) April 27, 2022
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A 2020 report by city staff found that the percentage of vacant stores in four of Vancouver’s six neighborhoods has risen by more than 10%. In six neighborhoods, the number of home-owned businesses decreased by 16 percent from 2012 to 2019, while the number of showcases owned by numbered companies increased by 41 percent and the number of developers owned increased by 71 percent. Stewart could not say the percentage of real estate owned by speculators, but said there are spaces across the city that remain confusingly empty for years, even on busy shopping streets, even in high demand for office, retail and artist space. . He acknowledged that some of the empty windows could be caused by a pandemic-induced recession. It could also be explained by the high rents that businesses can not afford, but noted that the tax may push commercial owners to reduce their rents to fill the space.
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“This not only opens up the possibility of more supply, but also has the added benefit of reduced rents,” he said. Empty storefronts on Robson Street Photo by Francis Georgian / PNG San Francisco and New York have recently introduced similar measures. The San Francisco tax, which went into effect earlier this year, charges homeowners an interest rate that starts at $ 250 per linear foot of the showcase for spaces that are empty for more than 182 days a year. But many Vancouver entrepreneurs are skeptical about the effectiveness of a tax on high vacancy rates. Lorraine Lowe, executive director of Sun Yat-sen Classical Garden in Chinatown, said the tax would be the last straw for a besieged neighborhood struggling with high vacancies, frequent graffiti and vandalism, and declining traffic. pedestrians due to lack of tourism. during the pandemic.
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“This is just a slap in the face,” Lowe said. “It simply came to our notice then. We are already hanging by a thread “. Did he call the “province” look like the bad guys here? Imposing a tax that would deliberately decimate #chinatownyvr knowing that we are a hood that suffers from the highest vacancy rates in the city? Get tired of anti-racists creating policies that suggest otherwise. # Vanpoli pic.twitter.com/MXxBvAPpUq – Lorraine Lowe (@lorrainelowe_) April 27, 2022
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Lowe worries that a tax would force desperate building owners to rent space to businesses that could reduce the area’s cultural heritage, as opposed to the community’s plan to seek a UNESCO World Heritage name. Instead of taxes, the city should work to improve public safety in Chinatown, he said. Jordan Eng, president of the Chinatown Business Improvement Association, said he did not think speculation was an issue in Chinatown. He notes that Chinatown Parkade Plaza, which struggles with 73 percent vacancies and has vacancies for more than a decade, belongs to the city. Eng said Chinatown, Gastown, Strathcona and Downtown Eastside will be hit hardest by the empty store tax, as neighborhoods are at the heart of the opioid crisis and homeowners are already struggling to find tenants to run sustainable businesses. in a difficult environment.
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“The city should encourage new businesses and provide carrots instead of raising the hammer,” he said. Nolan Marshall III, president and CEO of the Downtown Vancouver Business Improvement Association, said he was disappointed by the lack of consultation on the proposed tax. He also disagrees that this is the way to help businesses recover. “It is very difficult to imagine a scenario where you will successfully tax yourself in the economic recovery.” Instead, the city should eliminate bureaucracy, reduce long waiting times for business licenses and improve public safety, Marshall said. Councilors Rebecca Bligh, Lisa Dominato and Sarah Kirby-Yung voted against the amendment on Tuesday. The trio recently joined the A Better City Party, led by mayoral candidate Ken Sim.
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Raising taxes on business owners as they struggle to break the heels of a pandemic shows just how irrelevant and mischievous Kenned Stewart is. I’m proud of ABC Advisors and those who oppose this policy that destroys affordability #vanpoli https://t.co/6a7DVBI4Yt – Ken Sim (@kensimcity) April 27, 2022
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On Wednesday, Bligh said there was no push from businesses or the BIA for an empty store tax. “Except for a handful of bad apples sitting in empty commercial spaces; most of the empty storefronts are not that design,” Bligh said, citing COVID-19, licensing issues and rental eruptions as the most important. factors. The tax will penalize property owners for a complex issue that needs a stronger plan, he said. “A slap in the face to a tax is not going to help and it will just hurt the situation.” [email protected] twitter.com/cherylchan More news, fewer ads: Our in-depth journalism is possible thanks to the support of our subscribers. For just $ 3.50 a week, you can get unlimited, ad-lite access to The Vancouver Sun, The Province, the National Post, and 13 other Canadian news sites. Support us with your registration today: The Vancouver Sun | The Province.
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