Ladysmith council’s debate over permissive tax exemptions for non-profits spilled from its Sept. 16 meeting into October, with members divided over whether to grant an early tax break to a proposed seniors’ housing project.
At the Sept. 16 meeting, staff recommended council deny a 2026 permissive tax exemption for the Ladysmith Seniors Housing Society’s newly acquired lot at 117 Dogwood Dr., saying the site had not yet entered the permitting or construction stage and was not currently delivering a community service.
Coun. Tricia McKay supported the recommendation, saying she preferred to wait until construction began to ensure the project moved forward.
“When we give a permissive tax exemption, the rest of our citizens pay that,” she said. “If we give this organization a tax exemption, all of our other taxpayers, seniors included, make up that difference.”
Coun. Marsh Stevens agreed, saying it was best to “go with the policy in this case” until the project was developed further.
Others saw the exemption as a gesture of support.
Coun. Duck Paterson argued council already grants exemptions to other volunteer-driven organizations, including social clubs and churches, and that it would be inconsistent not to do the same for the seniors’ housing society. He called the exemption “a small show of support” for an organization with a long record of successful seniors’ housing projects in town.
Coun. Virtanen agreed, saying the society “is a nonprofit organization doing much-needed work for our seniors.”
Council defeated the staff recommendation to deny the request, then voted to grant a one-year permissive exemption for 117 Dogwood Dr., directing staff to include the property in the 2026 bylaw.
The Seniors Housing Society operates Lions Villa and Lions Way, two established seniors’ housing complexes in Ladysmith. The Dogwood Drive property is their proposed third project.
Later in the September meeting, Coun. Stevens questioned whether council should be deciding which organizations receive exemptions without knowing whether those choices reflect public support. To address that, he proposed adding yes-or-no ballot questions to the 2026 municipal election, allowing voters to directly approve four-year exemptions for each group. He said the idea would improve transparency, reduce staff workload and ensure decisions reflect community sentiment.
“The reasoning being: you do it once, you have popular support for organizations or you don't,” he said. “You have a real finger on the pulse of the community.”
Several councillors pushed back, warning the proposal could turn volunteer and non-profit groups into election issues and pit organizations against one another. Others cited logistical challenges, such as ballot length and the difficulty of ensuring voters understood the implications.
Council ultimately defeated the motion, with Stevens the lone vote in favour.
When council reconvened Oct. 7, the 2026 permissive tax exemption bylaw came forward for formal readings. This version (Bylaw No. 2220) still included the exemption for the Ladysmith Seniors Housing Society’s Dogwood Drive property.
However, after discussion, council voted to defeat that bylaw and introduced a new motion removing 117 Dogwood Dr. from the list of exemptions. The updated version (Bylaw No. 2223) was otherwise identical and received its first three readings.
Couns. Paterson and Stevens both opposed the revised bylaw. Paterson said the decision contradicted council’s earlier intent to support the project. Stevens reiterated concerns about fairness and consistency, urging a review of the policy before next year’s cycle.
Council is expected to revisit both the permissive tax exemption policy and its broader application process in the coming months.
