I’m a little mixed about the announced tax deal between the City and Sun Wave.
On one hand I can see the reasoning for giving up all tax revenue in order to get the place up and running, get people back to work which will support other tax paying businesses and such.
On the other hand I am a little confused as to how the City can hold the line on future and past taxes when a player such as Woodbridge came into the picture a year ago. The City was so insistent on getting back taxes that Woodbridge bolted.
Now the City is not only writing off past taxes but future taxes as well.
What kind of precedent are they setting for the future industry that is inevitably coming here??
I understand that Sun Wave will be “donating” some money to enhance city services rather than to pay taxes. Are these city services outlined in the agreement? I just wonder if the money will be going to re-build our roads, streets and water system. Apparently there is 85 km of our water system that is due to be replaced. Will it go to recreation and parks? Will it help to bring the level of policing and fire back to where it was? I’m just curious.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for getting the mill running but I do have some doubts and questions about this agreement. I’d like to hear some other opinions.
Consider this from the San Francisco Chronicle last May:
“China National Offshore Oil Corp. bought a $150 million share in oil sands producer MEG Energy Corp. And PetroChina Co. signed a memorandum of understanding with Enbridge Inc. for half of the supply on the proposed $2 billion Gateway pipeline, which will move 400,000 barrels per day from Alberta to the port at Prince Rupert in British Columbia.”
While the Gateway project could actually go to Kitimat or Rupert, if it turns out to be the latter (Rupert is the logical choice when you look at that route tankers would travel) I wonder why the Chinese would want a piece of property that has rail and deep water access like the Watson site?
The reason the tax deal stinks is the China Paper Group now has one of the best pieces of property in the area – for oil and gas. And they got it for a song (and not a good one at that, something by Yanni i think… )
So even if the pulp mill starts up for a while, its days are numbered - we gave up a multi-million dollar piece of land (and probably hundreds of millions in taxes over the next 30 years) for a few years (tops) of $17 an hour jobs in a twilight industry. All because people in this town can’t just let that stupid mill die. Brilliant.
