A municipal accommodation tax is still on the agenda for The Blue Mountains, but there is a long road and lots of work ahead before it can be implemented.
At its committee of the whole meeting on April 24, council approved a staff recommendation to prepare a report about what the process will be for the municipality to implement a municipal accommodation tax. At the same time, staff also recommended against proceeding with more work on a potential vacant home tax for the town.
During the 2023 budget process, council requested staff bring back more information about the possibility of the tourism tax and vacant home tax as measures to increase town revenue.
Although the vacant home is off the table for the time being, the town remains interested in establishing a municipal accommodation tax.
A municipal accommodation tax is levied on visitors who stay in commercial accommodations within a municipality, which can include hotels, bed and breakfasts and short-term rentals such as Airbnbs. This tax was introduced in Ontario in 2017 as a tool for municipalities to generate revenue for tourism-related activities and projects.
The municipality is responsible for using at least 50 per cent of the revenue generated from the tax to support activities such as tourism marketing, promotion, and infrastructure development, while the remainder can be used for general municipal activities unrelated to tourism.
In the report and presentation, town staff said they would bring back a process report in June about the steps that would be required to take to implement a municipal accommodation tax. Tim Hendry, manager of communications and economic development, told council the report would not make any recommendation one way or another about the tax, but rather would outline the process required.
“We understand a Municipal Accommodation Tax is a very unique and complicated process,” Hendry said.
The process will include consultations with other municipalities that have implemented the accommodation tax and an outline for a public and stakeholder consultations on the issue.
Council as committee of the whole voted 7-0 in favour of the direction proposed by staff.
In the Town of Collingwood, councillors are also heading down the same road. On April 17, Collingwood council asked staff to bring back information and recommendations for a municipal accommodation tax in Collingwood.
Deputy Mayor Peter Bordignon said he was pleased to see the town taking a measured approach to the possibility of implementing a municipal accommodation tax.
“There are a lot of lessons to be learned. Nothing is cookie cutter. Nothing is cut and paste,” said Bordignon.
Prior to the staff report on the two taxes, the committee received a presentation from Andrew Siegwart, president of the Blue Mountain Village Association on the issue.
In his presentation, Siegwart urged council to be cautious with its approach to a municipal accommodation tax and asked for extensive consultations with the hospitality industry during the process.
“Doing it well and doing it effectively the first time is really the goal of all those impacted,” said Siegwart.
