Brandon Sun - PRINT EDITION
Hotels are seen along the Trans-Canada Highway in Brandon on Monday afternoon. Some visitors have expressed concern about the city’s accommodations tax, which was implemented last month. (COLIN CORNEAU/BRANDON SUN)
With Brandon’s new accommodation tax in effect for nearly two months, how are guests feeling about the extra $3 per night?
Darlene Janssen, general manager of the Comfort Inn, said there have been several complaints since the July 1 start date.
"It’s not too bad for the most part. We do have a number of guests who have expressed their unhappiness with it," Janssen said.
"They’re not very happy and they question what it’s going for. They feel that for the size of the city, it shouldn’t be there."
Janssen said with GST, the tax works out to $3.15 per night, which can add up quickly over a lengthy stay.
Many cities have implemented a hotel tax, and Janssen said she’s OK with it, "as long as it’s going to what it’s intended for."
Funds collected from the hotel tax will be funnelled into tourism initiatives, particularly for attracting or keeping events in Brandon.
"The one guiding force behind the tax was, how do we increase the number of people that are staying in a hotel overnight in Brandon?" said Sandy Trudel, the city’s director of economic development. "How do we take … the events sector and grow it to its absolute maximum? And that’s what the intent of this tax is, to provide additional funds to make that area of the tourism industry flourish."
The Brandon Sun spoke to several hotel guests across the city Monday and most had an indifferent attitude toward it.
One guest said it didn’t bother him to pay a few dollars extra and it’s just the way things are in most cities.
"Things have been going good," said Brent Miller, general manager of the Victoria Inn. "People are fairly used to it across the country … The rate is what they look at."
Miller said they were "definitely on the fence" when the hotel tax idea first came about.
"My concern is that’s it’s spent properly," Miller said. "We were not in favour of the tax… now we’ll be watching them to see how the money is used."
Trudel said funds go directly into the accommodation tax reserve and in order for funds to be drawn out it has to match a "very specific" acceptable use criteria.
"So any applications that come in, they will be reviewed first to make sure they comply with the intent of the bylaw and then they will go through the evaluation matrix that is based on the type of application," Trudel said. "So it’s not a matter of being used for anything, it’s a very specific use, which is targeted at the attraction/retention of events."
There have been no applications submitted yet.
There are exemptions to the tax, listed at brandon.ca/accommodation-tax, where people can also find out how to apply for a refund if their stay qualifies as exempt. Flood evacuees in hotels and people who stay longer than 30 days at a time are examples of those who can apply for a refund. The website also includes information on how to apply for the funds.
According to June 2012 data from Economic Development Brandon, the city’s average hotel occupancy rate is down two per cent from the same period of time in 2011. No data is yet available from July onwards, which is when the new tax was implemented.
"I don’t anticipate we will see a change if you look at what has happened all across North America and Canada," Trudel said. "They have not been able to attribute a reduction in room rentals to the implementation of an accommodation tax … So if Brandon follows that established pattern, then I don’t anticipate a reduction here, but … time will tell."
The amount collected through the hotel tax is not yet known, as data will be collected on a quarterly basis.
Trudel said the first report will be available in October.
» jaustin@brandonsun.com
Republished from the Brandon Sun print edition August 28, 2012
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With Brandon’s new accommodation tax in effect for nearly two months, how are guests feeling about the extra $3 per night?
Darlene Janssen, general manager of the Comfort Inn, said there have been several complaints since the July 1 start date.
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With Brandon’s new accommodation tax in effect for nearly two months, how are guests feeling about the extra $3 per night?
Darlene Janssen, general manager of the Comfort Inn, said there have been several complaints since the July 1 start date.
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Posted by:Kerry Rhonda
August 29, 2012 at 2:13 PM
Why are we asking hoteliers about their thoughts on the tax? Do we ask Walmart what it thinks about how the GST and PST is spent? Just like any retailer, it is the customer who is paying the tax, not the collector.
Posted by:Bandb
August 28, 2012 at 12:01 PM
A tax is a tax is a tax...charging people more to attract more people to the city with "events" seems like a bit of a pipe dream. This is just a plain and simple tax grab, call it what it is! I'd have more respect for the City of Brandon if they listed it as such when it's charged for the privlige of staying in Brandon and spending money within the city.