Quote:
Originally Posted by NK59
Disagree... Let them build before the demand if they want. It's their money!
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That's not entirely true. The risk of not being substantially occupied falls to the city - the benefit rolls to the developer. The tax incentives are calculated out using a nominal vacancy rate to get at the property's potential taxable value to the city with those funds then being advanced to the developer (this is known as the SHED TIF). If those values don't play out, as in, if there's more vacancy, or a lower lease rate, then those funds are rebated by the developer. The city only collects the taxes the building
actually generates and then has to close the gap between the subsidy and the actual value. Sort of like what's happening at Centrepoint right now given their large vacancy rate.
The only somewhat mitigating factor - if you can call it that - is that the Province has kicked in a large sum of money to finance the SHED TIF. But I might call that cold comfort.