innsertnamehere
Superstar
Two warehouse buildings in Hamilton nearing completion:
- Thread starter innsertnamehere
- Start date
Branden Simon
Active Member
Two buildings on 15 Ambitious Court has been complete and Soundbox Productions is now open for business - Photos from November 8, 2023
junctionist
Senior Member
It looks so ambitious!
TheHonestMaple
Active Member
This is the middle industry that Hamilton has always been missing. It's industry/commercial like this, which is why Burlington's property taxes are so low. The entire centre of Burlington is full of this type of stuff, think along Mainway. Really happy to see this sort of stuff finally happening here. I hope it helps with our money problems...
junctionist
Senior Member
Burlington's taxes are relatively high as well, at least compared with Toronto. Burlington is also struggling to attract businesses to that huge belt of low-density single-use commercial lands that it has in its centre. Developers have tried to propose mixed-use developments, which the city has turned down. As such, you see a lot of underutilized land.
TheHonestMaple
Active Member
Burlington's residential property taxes are significantly lower than Hamilton. Like nearly half.
just east of the creek
Active Member
Hamilton is the worst run city in the GTA, by far, and for a long time. A disaster for Flamboro, Waterdown etc.
Burlington has had issues attracting Developement to land zoned employment lands. Part of the issue is certain landowners/developers who want their properties rezoned for residential. In some places (around GO stations) this makes sense, in others, not so much. However commercial building is taking place.
Burlington has had issues attracting Developement to land zoned employment lands. Part of the issue is certain landowners/developers who want their properties rezoned for residential. In some places (around GO stations) this makes sense, in others, not so much. However commercial building is taking place.
innsertnamehere
Superstar
Toronto has absurdly low property taxes. Like, absurdly low. It's hardly a reasonable comparator for the rest of the province.
Hamilton's problem is a lot of old infrastructure, a lot of social service needs, little development charge revenue for decades, and a collapse of it's industrial tax base for most of the last 40 years. Not a lot of it's problems have to do with it's council, but it certianly hasn't helped. The problem is that it's basically Canada's only "rustbelt" city with a declining tax base to maintain existing infrastructure.
TheHonestMaple
Active Member
Has anyone calculated the expected tax revenue from all of the under construction/planned condo buildings going up downtown? I would imagine it's quite significant.
innsertnamehere
Superstar
it would be if the city wasn't giving them massive tax increment grants.. most of them won't pay full property taxes for another decade. I believe most pay 0% of the increased property tax the first year, 10% the second year, and so on.. They also get a break on development charges.
I believe that the City is planning on phasing out both the tax increment grants and the development charge exemptions soon though.
TheHonestMaple
Active Member
I'm just talking about the taxes those condo units will pay. Why wouldn't they pay full property taxes? I'm assuming once the developer hands over the condo to the first board of directors, they will be paying taxes.
innsertnamehere
Superstar
They will - but the city then refunds the taxes to the developer as an incentive to build the project in the first place. The refund gets progressively smaller every year until year 10.
This type of grant system is common in areas which struggle to attract development as it lowers the cost of development. Hamilton needed that downtown for a long time - but not so much any more.. which is why the city is considering dropping the incentive.
TheHonestMaple
Active Member
Sorry so let me understand this. So the owners of the units will pay property taxes, but then whatever they pay gets given back to the developer?
Chris R.
Senior Member
It's part of the tax increment program. Developers get a refund of the amount of the tax increment grant, reducing year by year.
I actually support the tax increment system remaining. The city should be aiming to plan for longer time frames. The city may have less tax revenue coming in immediately, but once the tax increment program is over the property tax revenue will be significantly higher. The property tax increment program encourages and makes solvent developments that otherwise wouldn't occur. It also reduces upfront costs to developers meaning lower cost to build much needed housing.
It makes up in part the exorbitantly high development charges we have become accustom to. I'd be supportive of removing the increment program if we also reviewed the extremely high development charges and shifted that over to property taxes.
junctionist
Senior Member
I know someone with a house worth about $1.5 million in south Burlington near the lake. The taxes are about $8,000 a year, which is a lot for a middle class home (especially in a city that doesn't have that many amenities like rapid transit or municipal expressways). Would that house be taxed at $16,000 a year in Hamilton?