Singhampton park remains with trustees

Clearview council approved a bylaw that will allow the Singhampton Memorial Park to remain in public ownership and be exempt from taxation.

Township treasurer Edward Henley reported Jan. 9, the park property was transferred to trustees by William Guy Jacques in 1949 and since then, has been maintained as a privately owned park that is open to the public.

The trustees did not pay property taxes for a variety of reasons until 2010, when changes to the rules made the exemption no longer possible, states Henley. He reported, since then staff has been looking for a way for the property to be officially exempt from taxation.

The Municipal Act allows tax exemption for a property that is being used as a municipal capital facility for cultural, recreational or tourism purposes. The main condition is that the land must currently be owned by the municipality, or will in the future. MPAC provided, said Henley, that if there was a written agreement that stated that the property would be owned by Clearview after a period of time then that would be sufficient to meet the requirements of the legislation.

This agreement provides for the conditions set out by MPAC and allows the trustees of the Singhampton Memorial Park to continue owning and operating the property until Dec. 31, 2035. The agreement also provides for the arrangement to be cancelled, at which time the property would revert back to being taxed, or for a new agreement to replace the existing proposed agreement.

At the meeting Monday, Henley said the agreement just formalizes an existing situation. CAO Steve Sage added that the agreement not only clears up the taxation issue but also minimizes the township’s liability.