There is lot of construction in Downtown Kingston. They are installing new water and sewer pipes, which were reportedly the oldest in Canada, and new roads with granite curbs! There’s no question that this was badly needed and it will look great. So great in fact, that I expect these tax-funded improvements will boost your property values … if you happen to own downtown commercial real estate.

Of course higher property values usually means higher rental rates, but can commercial rental rates go any higher?

My wife and I were interested in renting a 1200 sq foot downtown retail property when we first moved to Kingston in 2005. That is until we learned the rent was $36,000 … per month! I was in such disbelief I had to ask three times. Yes, that is per month, not a misprint. That kind of money gets you street-level retail space in Manhattan, even on Broadway! What could possibly explain such high rates in a small town like Kingston?

I am told that downtown Kingston was fairly run down before amalgamation. In fact, one long-term resident of Kingston East recently told me that the cash win-fall from the larger tax base was responsible for fixing up the downtown. That may have boosted property values substantially, along with retail rental rates; quite a gift from the townships to the downtown landlords. Yet, even with this win-fall of tax dollars from amalgamation, downtown businesses are closing faster than they can raise our taxes. Are we just enriching the already wealthy downtown landlords a second time? They certainly seem immune to the lost rental income from closing businesses. Enormous wealth will do that.

I will enjoy the beautiful new downtown streets, granite curbs and all; the work crews are certainly doing a great job. With any luck one of the restaurants will survive so my wife and I can get a snack after we stroll passed a few blocks of “For Lease” signs in the vacant windows.

In spite of our very high property taxes, Kingston was rated one of Canada’s worst run cities by Macleans magazine last summer (http://www2.macleans.ca/2009/07/16/canadas-best-and-worst-run-cities). We barely beat out Charlottetown PEI for last spot!

Even in Brockville, where property taxes are much lower, they pick up your Christmas tree; there is a spring cleaning pickup where they’ll take away anything you put out; they don’t reject your recycling because the cardboard isn’t bundled to code or there’s a tomato stain in an empty can of tomatoes, god forbid; and when I lived in Brockville, my water bill was less than half of what I now must pay.

We need to wake up in the East. Our taxes are being given away and the third crossing is just a false promise to keep us quiet.

We are paying over $100,000 per year to more than 50 public employees for nearly the worst service in Canada. They work for us. If this was a real business, they’d be fired. And that’s what secession means. It’s time to fire our underperforming employee – the City of Kingston. Can you imagine what we could do in the East if we could spend our tax dollars here?

By: Steve Brule