CollingwoodToday welcomes letters to the editor. They can be submitted on the site here, or emailed to [email protected]. Please include your full name, address and phone number for verification purposes. The following letter was submitted in response to an article about Collingwood council considering a municipal accommodation tax levied on local hotel bills and another letter to the editor on the issue suggesting the tax is necessary for short-term rentals.
The municipal accommodation tax that is currently being considered by Collingwood council, in terms of implementation, needs to be applied in a fair and equitable manner if this legislation is ultimately enacted. For the tourism accommodation playing field to be level, the tax would need to be applied to any accommodation stay, whether motel, hotel or short-term accommodation.
At the end of the day, 50 per cent of the accommodation tax revenues, under the guidelines specified within the law, must be used directly for tourism marketing. That marketing effort results in more tourists, which is a good outcome.
The massive annual tourism “spend” in Collingwood by all our visitors on an annual basis is a major contributor to the local economy and supports and drives employment. The Town of Collingwood can use the other 50 per cent of the accommodation tax revenues to spend/invest as they deem most appropriate. Ideally, the municipal portion would be spent on programs and services that visitors take advantage of when here enjoying all that Collingwood offers (e.g. a spend on roads, transit, culture, parks, natural areas and recreation).
Stu Frith
Blue Mountains, Ont.
