A request for a tax incentive for the potential purchaser of the Emmanuel Pentecostal Fellowship property on 104th St. in North Battleford was turned down Monday by city council.
The building is to be auctioned, and the organization had been hoping the buyer could receive a five-year tax exemption for the property. However, there were several stumbling blocks to the request. One was that the property was located outside of the city’s current tax exemption areas.
“This property doesn’t fall under any of the currently available programs,” said Director of Corporate Services Jennifer Niesink.
Also, administration noted there was no clear proposed use for the property. Niesink suggested such a tax exemption request could instead be sought by the new owner, once they had a better idea what the property would entail.
“We have some difficulty recommending a blanket incentive to make the property more attractive for sale,” said Niesink, adding that could set a precedent.
In the end, council voted unanimously to turn the request down.
