How it was
Powell River is where I was raised. The mountains, lakes and seashore were always praised. I remember good times in my years, of all the old places as a kid, like the old Townsite, and the mill whistle that sounded on the hour. I miss it. Those were the good old days when the Patricia Theatre was always showing movies for the kids on weekends. Townsite will never change. Powell River company houses are sure well kept and over the years the people who bought them have had fun renovating them and keeping them nice with their lovely gardens.
Powell River is a very isolated community and needs BC Ferries to give this city a break in fares and help the people of this pretty city live their lives without fear of losing jobs, their homes, sports teams and tourists [Ferries swipe at livelihood,” January 22].
Our ferries should be our highway, not a money grab, robbing the locals of their livelihoods. Keep beautiful Powell River the way it should be—beautiful and green—the Pearl of the Sunshine Coast.
When ferry fares are lower, I would like to come back some day so I am hoping BC Ferries will read this letter and think of this beautiful isolated city and lower fuel costs and rates for our people.
Clifford Lang
Squamish, BC
Flat tax unfair
City of Powell River council has been asked to hear a delegation on the issue of the flat tax portion of Powell River’s residential property tax [“Industry tax below average,” May 8, 2013]. The delegation will be asking that the city consider keeping the flat tax instead of (as is now policy) reducing it by five per cent each year until it reaches zero.
Keeping the flat tax would be a step backward. Flat taxes are regressive—disproportionately affecting lower-income people (and their lower-valued properties) because the tax they pay is a larger percentage of their income than it is for someone earning more. A $383 flat tax (the amount currently scheduled for 2014) represents a 1.9 per cent tax for someone earning $20,000 but for someone earning $60,000 it represents just 0.63 per cent—one third as much.
While there isn’t a direct correlation between income level and property values these two things are usually connected. And while property assessment might be unfair in some instances, the city has no control over it. Taxes come out of people’s earned income and taxing low-income people at a higher rate than higher-income people is inequitable. One of the 10 guiding principles in Powell River’s 2014 Sustainable Official Community Plan is “Strive for equity.”
In this regard, council might better focus attention on the ill-considered tax breaks the city has provided Catalyst Paper Corporation for its Powell River division mill. Since 2008, according to calculations by councillor Russell Brewer and referred to in last year’s budget deliberations, those breaks have cost us (that is, other taxpayers) $16 million—an amount well over $2 million a year.
Municipal taxes (which represent just 0.6 of 1 per cent of Catalyst’s total operating costs) play a minuscule role in Catalyst’s bottom line so the tax breaks have not even served their stated purpose. No such breaks were provided Catalyst by Port Alberni and its mill is doing fine. An additional $2 million means little to Catalyst, but it would make a huge difference to Powell River.
Council can review the special tax break (and its effectiveness) in 2015. Let’s hope a new council does so.
Murray Dobbin
Michigan Avenue
