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The end of the pandemic is welcome news for businesses that have been operating under COVID-19 restrictions.
However, owners in Saskatoon’s Riversdale district say their reward for sticking it out are steep tax increases.
The Riverdale Business Improvement District (RBID) said businesses are facing an average increase of 65 per cent on their 2021 tax bills after property reassessments by the province.
Neil Robinson, owner of Garden Architecture and Design, saw his taxes more than double over last year, which he calls “unacceptable.”
“It’s hard to absorb coming off a time when people’s bottom lines have been impacted by COVID-19,” he said.
“I feel the city has walked away from us. You’re going to see some businesses in Riversdale close.”
Carla Scharback is the owner of Anthology Home Collection and Blossoms Florals.
While she doesn’t own her building, she is fully expecting her rent to go up with owners on her block faced with tax increases of between 5o and 7o per cent.
“I feel my landlord will have to do something. I would eventually expect it will be in my operating expenses somewhere,” Scharback said.
“I think in the last year we’ve all struggled so much as a community in Saskatoon (and) also in Riversdale just to stay afloat and to keep our business doors open. To do this is a slap in the face while we’re still talking about giving funding to things like libraries and bike lanes.”
Robinson said businesses were forced to adjust their operations over the past 16 months, but feels the city hasn’t shown the same flexibility on tax rates.
“I was told in May it is what it is and you’ll have to wait to next year to do your appeals,” he said. “I think they are wanting everyone to roll over and forget about it.”
In a statement, the city acknowledged some properties are seeing significant increases in 2021, but noted the average assessment increase of eight per cent is due to the provincially legislated reassessment cycle.
“Administration recommended to City Council that a two-year phase-in be approved for property tax changes due to reassessment. This phase-in is intended to partially mitigate changes in a property’s taxes caused by the reassessment,” the statement read.
It also notes city administration is exploring strategies to reduce tax rates after the city revealed it needed to increases taxes by 5.96 per cent in 2022, and 5.42 per cent in 2023 to cover the economic and financial impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The RBID has pushed for a freeze on taxes while the Saskatoon District Chamber of Commerce has asked to hold any increase to within 0.5 per cent of inflation, explore additional budget deferrals and freeze all non-essential hires.
Wednesday is the deadline for property owners to pay their taxes without penalty.
