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Diana Waltman n ’s quote in the Dec . 6 issue of the Pique that “it’s (our proposal) something that we’ll look at when we have the resources to do so , ” implies that the current staffing levels with in the municipality do not allow for the “additional work that needs to be done” to review the bylaw revision proposed. I would suggest the municipality has ample resources to make progress on this solution; all it takes is the political will to refocus our resources from one of penalizing the very citizens that it is intended to serve, to one of facilitating a solution within the resources available to it. Especially in light of recent calls for budget restraint I’ve heard of late, I can’t help but think the time is right to let this bylaw “close the loop holes” that previous approaches have not been able to accomplish. The right implementation of this solution could see the current inventory of non-compliant properties turned into additional taxable property value that is currently being missed. Additional building permit fees would also be a direct result of this new approach due to a much higher compliance rate with permitting. Please be reminded that over 80 per cent of the existing inventory is non-compliant.

To summarize, our proposal would see the municipality end up with a higher level of safety in our buildings, more revenue as a result of additional taxable space, and additional permitting fees, while expending less of our limited resources on litigation and enforcement. Not bad at a time when we’re looking for ways to minimize tax increases at city hall.

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