The Town of The Blue Mountains will give Blue Mountain Resort a two-year extension on a development charges credit that was about to expire.
At its committee of the whole meeting on March 18, council approved a two year extension after receiving a letter about the issue from resort president Dan Skelton.
In the letter, Skelton said the resort tore down its administration building in the spring of 2019 fully intending to build a new structure in its place.
In its development charges bylaw, the Town of The Blue Mountains gives property owners who tear down a structure, but intend to build a new structure in the same place a five-year exemption from paying development charges. This is a standard clause in development charges bylaws across the province. The intent is not to levy development charges on those replacing an older building with a new building.
Skelton said the COVID-19 pandemic caused an 18-24 month delay in their planning for a new structure to be part of the new Gondola Base Lodge. As a result, the five-year time frame for the credit would expire on April 25, 2024.
“As council and town staff are aware, Blue Mountain Resort is actively working on the design of a new Gondola Base Lodge and we are aiming to submit our site plan application in the coming weeks,” Skelton said in his letter. “Granting an extension to the expiration of the credit by two years would provide us with the additional time that we require to be ready to submit for a building permit.”
The letter estimated that the credit would be valued at $98,795.18.
Sam Dinsmore, acting finance director and treasurer, explained the history of the credit to council and advised that it would be fine for council to deal with the resort’s request as a “one-off.”
Dinsmore said this is the only time he has received a request for an extension. He noted that in most demolition scenarios the property owners begin construction on their new home immediately after the old home is taken down. Dinsmore did note that the credit applies only to the rebuilding of a similar-sized structure. As an example, he said if a property owner replaced a 1,000-square-foot building with a 2,000-square-foot building the credit would apply to the first 1,000 square feet, with development charges still being due on extra 1,000 square feet.
Members of council were supportive of providing the extension.
“This is almost a COVID situation. I’m quite comfortable extending this,” said Coun. Paula Hope.
