WESTLOCK – Homeland Housing will not have to pay $22,703.86 in property tax owing on Westlock Place, the 24-suite affordable housing apartment complex it took over from the Town of Westlock this year.
In addition to unanimously agreeing to waive the tax bill, town councillors voted 5-0 (councillors Murtaza Jamaly and Curtis Snell were absent) to pass Non-Profit Organizations Tax Exemption Bylaw 2022-11 at their June 13 regular meeting, a two-page edict that will “facilitate the management of tax exemption status requests from various organizations that qualify under the Community Organization Property Tax Exemption Regulation (COPTER) and other non-profit organizations that provide a public benefit.”
Town CAO Simone Wiley said while a tax exemption for Westlock Place wasn’t formally discussed during the year of negotiations on the sale or included in the legal title transfer documents signed between the two, “in all the discussions council and administration had with Homeland Housing, that was the intent.” Administration also noted that while all of Homeland’s seniors housing facilities automatically qualify under Section 362 of the Municipal Government Act, Westlock Place, an affordable housing facility, does not.
Formed in 2017 and based in Morinville, Homeland Housing counts 11 member municipalities and 13 elected representatives and is a not-for-profit management body which oversees seniors lodges, supportive living and self-contained seniors facilities like Smithfield and Pembina lodges in Westlock. Homeland paid the town $617,080 for Westlock Place and officially took ownership Jan. 1, 2022.
“I think this addresses a few things. First, it addresses the intent of the transfer of Westlock Place to Homeland Housing and the intent of the community building affordable housing and certainly our intent when we passed it on to Homeland that we would continue to have it
available and to fill that need in our community,” said mayor Ralph Leriger.
“Let’s be honest, the sale of Westlock Place wasn’t to fill our pockets with cash. We had a housing authority experienced in operating and felt that it was a better fit. The need for affordable housing still remains in the community.”
Westlock Place officially opened Aug. 1, 2009, and serves low-to-medium income working families and individuals, persons with special needs and seniors that are below the Core Needs Income Threshold (CNIT). The $5.1 million building was paid for primarily via $3.87 million in provincial grant money, plus some donations. In October 2009, town council approved a $1.1-million loan to cover the remainder — that 20-year debenture came with a 4.25 per cent interest rate, which added up to a total repayment figure of $1.64 million.
The new bylaw
Administration hopes the new two-page bylaw will hopefully streamline the application process as they currently receive COPTER applications annually and then provide recommendations to council.
Now, once an application has been received and vetted, it will stay valid for three years, with renewals starting in the second and third years — the bylaw itself will be reviewed by council again in 2025. Ultimately, non-profit organizations either qualify for COPTER under Section 362 of the MGA or receive non-taxable status via council vote under Section 364.
“The three-year renewal process is to eliminate some of the red tape off of the organization, so they don’t have to fill out a full application (annually),” said finance director Julia Seppola.
“In the strat plan, this has to do with governance for sure I thought, instead of bogging down council every year by looking at these applications, having administration review the applications for appropriateness under 362 and in conjunction with the assessor … I did find a mixed bagged on municipalities for that.”
There are currently 181 properties in Westlock with a total assessed value of $181,476,570 that fall under COPTER, which is about 24 per cent of the total assessed value ($780,730,260) of all properties in town.
