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4. BEECHWOOD CEMETARY –
REIMBURSEMENT OF FEES CIMETIÈRE BEECHWOOD – REMBOURSEMENT DES
DROITS |
COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION AS AMENDED
That Council:
1. Approve, as an indication of
its strong support for this national institution, the reimbursement of fees and
charges totalling $111,693.29, as follows:
From 2009 Planning operating budget revenue
account - $ 19,207.51;
From Water Capital Reserve Fund - $ 6,100.00;
and
From City-Wide Capital Reserve (Building permit
fees & DC’s) - $86,385.75; and
2. Direct staff to develop a policy and process for responding to
these requests, including the criteria for a request to qualify, upset limit
for refunds and source of funding, and to report back to Committee in September
2009.
Recommandation modifiÉeS du Comité
Que le Conseil :
1.
Approuve
le remboursement des droits et des redevances d’un montant total de 111 693, 29
$, afin de
démontrer son appui solide à cette institution nationale, de la façon
suivante :
Du compte des recettes du budget de
fonctionnement 2009 d’Urbanisme – 19 207,51 $;
Du Fonds de réserve du service d’eau
– 6 100,00 $; et
Du Fonds de réserve pour
immobilisations de la Ville d’Ottawa (Droits de permis de construction et
redevances d’aménagement) – 86 385,75 $; et
2.
Demande au personnel d’élaborer une politique et un processus visant à
répondre à ces demandes, y compris les critères d’admissibilité des demandes,
l’établissement d’un montant de remboursement maximal et les sources de
financement, et d’en faire rapport au Comité au mois de septembre 2009.
DOCUMENTATION
2. Extract
of Draft Minutes
Report to / Rapport au:
Corporate Services and Economic Development
Committee
Comité des services organisationnels et du développement
économique
and Council / et au Conseil
26 May 2009 / le 26 mai 2009
Coordonnateur de comité
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Ref N°: ACS2009-CMR-CSE-0006 |
SUBJECT: BEECHWOOD
CEMETARY – REIMBURSEMENT OF FEES
OBJET: CIMETIÈRE
BEECHWOOD – REMBOURSEMENT DES DROITS
That the Corporate Services and Economic
Development Committee recommend Council approve, as an indication of its strong
support for this national institution, the reimbursement of fees and charges
totalling $111,693.29 as outlined in this report.
Que le Comité des services organisationnels
et du développement économique recommande au Conseil d’approuver le
remboursement des droits et des redevances d’un montant total de 111 693, 29 $,
tel qu’il est énoncé dans le présent rapport, afin de démontrer son appui
solide à cette institution nationale.
WHEREAS Beechwood
Cemetery, as the home of the National Military Cemetery, the RCMP National
Memorial Cemetery, and a National Historic Site, has been designated as the
National Cemetery of Canada by Bill C-17; and,
WHEREAS Beechwood
is the final resting place of 19 men and women of the Canadian Forces who have
died recently while serving in Afghanistan with the NATO Forces as part of our
country’s commitment to the international community; and,
WHEREAS, by virtue of its location in the nation’s
capital, Beechwood Cemetery serves as a focal point for national memorial
events such as Remembrance Day, and it is an evocative location for state
funerals of Canada’s Governors General and Prime Ministers; and,
WHEREAS Beechwood
is also the final resting place for many prominent Canadians who helped shape
Ottawa and the country, including many former City of Ottawa mayors, national
political leaders such as Prime Minister Sir Robert Borden, Tommy Douglas,
Governor General Ramon Hnatyshyn, engineer and scientist Sir Sanford Fleming as
well as poets such as Archibald Lampman, Arthur Bourinot and William Wilfred
Campbell, to name a few; and,
WHEREAS Beechwood
Cemetery, established in 1873, is a not-for profit organization that is owned
and operated by the Beechwood Cemetery Foundation, a registered Canadian
charity; and,
WHEREAS the Foundation undertook renovations in 2002 to expand its
reception facility to better serve the community; and,
WHEREAS, in 2006,
the Foundation commenced construction of the Beechwood National Memorial
Centre, designed to serve the memorial and commemorative needs of all
Canadians. The stately 14,000 square
foot facility features a nine-sided Sacred Space to hold memorial services for
Canada’s diverse faith communities, large reception rooms and a Hall of Colours
to house the laid-up colours of Canada’s military regiments. It is believed to be the first centre of its
kind in the world and has been the object of national and international
attention;
and,
WHEREAS the Foundation has applied for grant funding to offset fees and
charges associated with these projects totalling $111,693.29 as detailed in the
list below;
and,
WHEREAS, the reimbursement of
each fee and charge must be offset by different reserve funds and operating
budgets, due to legislative directions in support of various construction
projects by charitable and non-profit organizations; and,
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the CSEDC recommend that City
Council, as an indication of its strong support for this national institution,
approve the reimbursement of fees and charges totalling $111,693.29 as follows:
From 2009 Planning operating budget
revenue account $ 19,207.51
From the Parkland Reserve Fund $ 8,826.78
From Water Capital Reserve Fund $ 6,100.00
CONSULTATION
This item will be advertised in the local dailies as part of the Public Meeting Advertisement on Friday preceding the Committee meeting.
Comment
from Building Code Services Branch
On July 1, 2005, the Building Code Act was amended, which introduced
changes related to the collection of building permit fees and the assignment of
permit revenues. Specifically, the
legislative changes directed that building permit fees/revenues could cover
only those costs associated with servicing building permits and enforcing the
Act and Code. Thus, all Building Code
related activities are required to be revenue neutral and surplus revenues can
no longer be generated, nor relied upon for offsetting the waiver of fees in
support of various construction projects by charitable and non-profit
organizations. This impact was
discussed in the report presented to Council on June 22, 2005 entitled
“Building Regulatory Changes - Impact of Building Code Statute Law Amendment
Act and Ontario Regulation 305/05” (ACS2005-PGM-BLD-0010).
As a consequence, if Council wishes to support requests for grants to
offset building permit fees, it is necessary to fund the offset from the
City-Wide Capital Reserve Fund.
LEGAL
/ RISK MANAGEMENT IMPLICATIONS
There are no
Legal/Risk Management impediments to implementing the recommendation in this
Report
FINANCIAL
IMPLICATIONS
The
Beechwood Cemetery Foundation incurred the fees and charges outlined in the
motion over the 2002 to 2006 time period.
The attachment to this report summarizes the history of these fees and
charges which includes development charges, building permit fees, water
connection fees, parkland levy, along with a variety of planning application
fees.
The
motion recommends that these fees and charges be reimbursed from several
funding sources.
·
Parkland
Reserve $8,826.78 – funds are available
·
Water
Capital Reserve Fund $6,100.00 – funds are available
·
Planning
2009 operating budget $19,207.51 – the department has indicated that it will
attempt to absorb the reimbursement against the 2009 revenue budget.
·
City
Wide Capital Reserve Fund $77,559.00 – this amount represents the Development
Charges and Building Permit fees paid
by the Foundation. In accordance with provincial
legislation, funds cannot be reimbursed from either the Development Charge
Deferred Revenue account or from the Building Services Permit Fees
account. Based on the level of
contributions to the City Wide Reserve Fund and the projected commitments, the
2009 year-end balance in the Fund is forecasted to be in a $3.3 million overdraft
position. Should Committee and
Council approve the grant request, the 2010 capital program will be restricted
in order to re-establish a positive Fund balance.
Staff to implement Council’s decision.
|
Beechwood Cemetery Foundation 280 Beechwood Avenue |
|||||
|
Application Date |
Application No. |
Description |
Fees Paid |
Total Eligible Fees |
Comments |
|
Dec 7/06 |
A06-008769 |
Building Permit - above ground structure |
$31,387.50 |
$31,387.50 |
Grant funding must be offset by City Wide Capital Reserve Fund. |
|
Nov 27/06 |
|
Post Approval Engineering fees |
$2,948.92 |
$2,948.92 |
These fees offset costs incurred in 2006/07 associated with the reviews and inspections of construction. Reimbursement must be offset from 2009 Planning operating budget revenue account, which will create a budget shortfall. |
|
Jul 28/06 |
D07-12-06-0204 |
Site Plan Application |
$9,858.60 |
$9,858.60 |
Reimbursement of fees collected in 2006 must be offset from 2009 Planning operating budget revenue account. |
|
Oct 2/06 |
A06-007197 |
Building Permit -foundation |
$3,237.50 |
$3,237.50 |
Grant funding must be offset by City Wide Capital Reserve Fund. |
|
Jun 30/03 |
|
Water Services |
$6,100.00 |
$6,100.00 |
$2,000 deposit was refunded April 4, 2004. The remainder covered actual costs incurred in connecting a private service to city services and the cost of a water meter and are non-refundable. Reimbursement of fees collected in 2003 must be offset from 2009 operating budget revenue account and may result in a shortfall. |
|
Jun 17/03 |
A02-010698 |
Administrative Surcharge for
commencing construction without a building permit |
$6,300.00 |
$0.00 |
Non-refundable due to illegal construction activity. The surcharge offset additional enforcement costs that were incurred in 2003. Reimbursement would be perceived as condoning illegal construction. |
|
Jun 17/03 |
A02-010698 |
5% Parkland levy |
$8,826.78 |
$8,826.78 |
Must be offset by reducing the Parkland Reserve Fund. |
|
Jun 17/03 |
A02-010698 |
Development Charges |
$30,334.00 |
$30,334.00 |
Must be offset by reducing the Development Charges Reserve. |
|
Mar 27/03 |
|
Post Approval Engineering fees |
$3,649.99 |
$3,649.99 |
These fees offset costs incurred in 2003 for reviews and inspections of construction. Reimbursement must be offset from 2009 Planning operating budget revenue account, which will create a budget shortfall. |
|
Oct 21/02 |
A02-010698 |
Building Permit -addition to the reception facility |
$12,600.00 |
$12,600.00 |
Must be offset by City Wide Capital Reserve Fund. |
|
Oct 18/02 |
OSP2002-0358 |
Site Plan Application |
$2,750.00 |
$2,750.00 |
Reimbursement of fees collected in 2002 must be offset from 2009 Planning operating budget revenue account, which will create a budget shortfall. |
|
Total |
$117,993.29 |
$111,693.29 |
|
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BEECHWOOD CEMETARY –
REIMBURSEMENT OF FEES
CIMETIÈRE BEECHWOOD – REMBOURSEMENT
DES DROITS
ACS2009-CMR-CSE-0006
Councillor Jellett indicated staff had prepared
a technical amendment, which he was prepared to move. He explained the motion would shift around the sources of funding
for the requested reimbursement.
Before moving to a vote, Councillor Wilkinson
asked whether other non-profit groups paid fees such as the ones that were the
subject of the current request. Ms.
Marian Simulik, City Treasurer, responded affirmatively.
Councillor Wilkinson referenced the tables
contained at pages 54 and 55 of the agenda package and asked staff to walk
Committee through the fees that were and those that were not normally waived
for non-profit groups. Ms. Simulik went
through the list, indicating there was precedent with respect to building
permit fees, the parkland levy and development charges but that she was not
aware of the City previously waiving or reimbursing engineering fees, site plan
application fees or water service fees.
Councillor Wilkinson
indicated she was prepared to move an amendment to the motion, to reimburse for
those fees the City would normally waive or reimburse, thereby reducing the
total amount to be reimbursed in this case.
At this juncture, Committee heard from the
following public delegation.
Ms. Vera Yuzyk, Director of Development,
Beechwood Cemetery Foundation,
advised that Beechwood Cemetary was established in 1873, was located in the
heart of Ottawa, and that it was considered one of the most beautiful and
historical cemeteries in Canada. She explained that: of its 160 acres,
approximately 60 remained available for future use; for 136 years, Beechwood
had provided a dignified and final resting place for over 75,000 Canadians from
all walks of life, including many prominent Canadians and 26 former Mayors of
Ottawa; and its 14,000 square foot facility featured a stately nine-sided
sacred space area, additional reception rooms and a Hall of Colours. She indicated Beechwood was committed to
respecting and promoting the linguistic duality of Canada and that all their
services were offered in French and English.
Further, the cemetary was open to all faiths and backgrounds and she submitted
it was a true reflection of Canada’s identity as a multi-cultural and
multi-faith society. She reported that
it: was the home of the Chinese
cemetery of Ottawa; was a national historic site, designated by the Historic
Sites and Monuments Board of Canada; and was owned and operated by the
Beechwood Cemetery Foundation, which developed and maintained the National
Military Cemetery and the RCMP National Memorial Cemetery. She talked about the Foundation’s governance
structure and some of the milestones it had attained over the past decade,
including being recognized as the National Cemetary of Canada. She explained that the sacred space area was
designed after consultation with major faith leaders in order to better serve
the needs of Canada’s diverse faith communities and that it was believed to be
the first center of its kind in the world.
She maintained that the Beechwood Cemetary facilities continued to be
expanded because the demand for services continued to grow. She stated that, as a respected Ottawa
national institution and Canadian charity, the Beechwood Cemetary Foundation
was seeking a special reimbursement of the fees and charges totalling $111,693
paid to the City of Ottawa and she thanked Committee for considering the
motion.
Responding to a question
from Vice-Chair Desroches, Ms. Simulik advised that removing the engineering
fees, the site plan fees and the water service fees would result in a total
reimbursement of $86,385.78.
While he understood colleagues asking about how
other charitable organizations were treated insofar as the waiver or
reimbursement of fees, Councillor Legendre submitted that there was no
comparison for an institution such as Beechwood. He reminded Committee that Ottawa was the nation’s capital and as
such, occasionally took on responsibilities no other municipalities had. In this case, Beechwood had taken on the
responsibility of being the national resting place and he compared it to the
United States’ Arlington Cemetary.
Beechwood was the resting place for RCMP officers fallen in the line of
duty and for members of the military who died in Afghanistan, should they
choose to be buried in the nation’s capital rather than their hometowns. He re-iterated that Beechwood was unique,
that the growth of its facilities reflected its role as the National Cemetary,
and that therefore this request was unique.
He encouraged members to visit the facility, which was open to the
community, and he asked that its unique national role be recognized through
this gesture of support.
Responding to questions from Councillor
El-Chantiry, Ms. Simulik confirmed that the amendment proposed by Councillor
Wilkinson would reduce the amount reimbursed to the Beechwood Cemetary from
$111,693 to $86,385 and that effectively, any such reimbursement would be a
grant, the basis of which was the list of fees the Foundation had paid to the
City since 2002. She submitted that
Council had the authority to award a grant for any amount it deemed
appropriate.
Councillor El-Chantiry expressed some
discomfort over the debate to add or subtract certain elements of the
request. He suggested that Committee
and Council simply direct staff to pay a grant to the Beechwood Cemetary in the
amount of $111,000 and allow staff to determine from which account(s) the funds
would be drawn.
Vice-Chair Desroches reminded members that
Committee first had to deal with Councillor Wilkinson’s amendment.
Councillor Wilkinson recognized that this was
an emotional issue. However, she
maintained that the report before Committee was based on fees. She indicated the City had a policy with
respect to reimbursing fees to non-profit groups and should be consistent in
the treatment of such matters. She
suggested that if the City was not consistent with its policy in responding to
this request, other non-profit organizations could come forward asking for
similar treatment. Further, she noted
that because Beechwood was the National Cemetery, it had access to other
grants, to which many other non-profit groups did not. In closing, she re-iterated that the City should
be consistent in the way it treated requests from non-profit organizations for
the reimbursement of fees.
Councillor Hume believed the current policy was
ad hoc and that there in fact was no policy framework defining how the City
supported or did not support these types of institutions; that Council did what
it wanted in response to any given request.
He submitted this was the problem.
He introduced a motion directing staff to develop a policy and process
for responding to these requests, including criteria, upset limits for refunds,
and sources of funding, and report back to Committee in September. He recognized that the policy to be
developed would not capture the current request. However, he maintained that the City needed a comprehensive policy
framework for dealing with such requests and that Council could then deal with
the exceptional circumstances as they arose.
At this juncture, Committee
voted on the motion introduced by Councillor Wilkinson.
Moved by Councillor M. Wilkinson
That the amount of the grant to the
Beechwood Cemetary be reduced to $86,385.78, in line with amounts normally
reimbursed to a non-profit organization, namely for building permit fees,
parkland levies and development charges.
LOST
Yeas (2): R.
Bloess, M. Wilkinson
Nays (5) G.
Brooks, E. El-Chantiry, P. Hume, R. Jellett, S. Desroches
Committee then voted on the motion introduced
by Councillor Jellett, which had been prepared by staff to amend the source of
funding, based on the original request.
Moved by Councillor R. Jellett
That the Corporate Services and Economic Development Committee recommend
Council, as an indication of its support for this national institution, approve
the reimbursement of fees and charges totalling $111,693.29 as follows:
From 2009 Planning operating budget revenue
account - $19,207.51;
From Water Capital Reserve Fund - $6,100.00;
and
From City-wide Capital Reserve (Building permit
fees & DCs) - $86,385.78.
CARRIED with Councillor M. Wilkinson dissenting
Moved by Councillor P. Hume
WHEREAS non-profit and charitable groups will
undertake, from time to time, construction projects to expand or rehabilitate
their facilities or build new facilities;
AND WHEREAS these non-profit and charitable
groups will incur costs, including permit fees and fees for service paid to the
City and either request these be waived or be reimbursed following completion
of the construction projects;
AND WHEREAS revenue targets have been assigned
to operating branches to avoid related activities being subsidized by taxpayers
where it is more appropriate that the users cover the costs of operation;
AND WHEREAS some requests must be offset by
general operating accounts or the City-wide reserve fund, thereby potentially
creating a budget pressure where funding is limited or results in targets not
being met;
AND WHEREAS there is no formal process for
responding to such requests;
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED
that staff be directed to develop a policy and process for responding to these
requests, including the criteria for a request to qualify, upset limit for
refunds and source of funding, and to report back to Committee in September
2009.
CARRIED
In conclusion, Committee voted on the item as
amended.
That the Corporate Services and Economic
Development Committee recommend Council:
1. Approve, as an indication of
its strong support for this national institution, the reimbursement of fees and
charges totalling $111,693.29, as follows:
From 2009 Planning operating budget revenue
account - $ 19,207.51;
From Water Capital Reserve Fund - $ 6,100.00;
and
From City-Wide Capital Reserve (Building permit
fees & DC’s) - $86,385.75; and
2. Direct staff to develop a
policy and process for responding to these requests, including the criteria for
a request to qualify, upset limit for refunds and source of funding, and to
report back to Committee in September 2009. .
CARRIED
as amended