Two Sisters Resort Corp.’s wish has been granted.
After a contentious debate among Niagara Region councillors on Thursday night over whether or not to waive nearly $1 million in development charges for the Parliament Oak hotel project in Niagara-on-the-Lake, council voted 14-11 to go ahead with waiving the fee.
The decision stipulates that the cost will not come out of the regional property tax levy, however, at this time, regional staff don’t know where exactly the money for that fee will come from.
That fee would’ve seen the developer, Two Sisters Resort Corp., pay $904,819 to Niagara Region — a development charge for the second level of an underground parking garage for what’s expected to be a luxury hotel at 325 King St. in Old Town.
The Town of NOTL put forth this second level of underground parking lot as an alteration to the developer’s plans, where originally there was going to be above-ground parking.
The developer’s lawyer, Tom Richardson of Sullivan Mahoney LLP, told regional council this was changed after “considerable objection” from the project’s neighbours.
With this change, the lot coverage of the hotel will be 25 per cent, and there will be more green space surrounding the hotel above ground.
Lord Mayor Gary Zalepa, who sits on regional council, voted in favour of waiving the fee along with 13 other regional councillors. In July, NOTL council agreed to support the developer’s bid to reduce their development charges for the hotel’s second level of underground parking by writing a letter to the region.
When asked directly by Welland Coun. Leanna Villella if the cost for this development charge is going to be passed onto the taxpayers of the Niagara region, the region’s chief administrative officer Ron Tripp said, “As this point, I don’t know,” and that regional staff is reviewing a variety of other options.
“We’re in the process of seeking legal advice,” he said. “There potentially are options. Maybe or maybe not desirable options, but that’s why I can’t give a definitive answer at this point in time.”
Richardson said the developer was looking at more than $5 million in regional development charges, including the underground parking lot fee. With this fee waived, it will still need to pay more than $4 million to Niagara Region for this development.
MORE TO FOLLOW.
