A local Member of Parliament hopes the Liberals come up with another plan to help heritage building owners. The Liberals voted down a proposed bill for a 26 per cent tax credit for renovations and repairs to buildings.
Kootenay Columbia MP Wayne Stetski is disappointed the bill didn’t go through as there was support locally.
Nelson only has one federally designated building, the CP Station and 69 properties that have been identified as historic places. Of those, 12 are also municipally designated, meaning that they also have a bylaw that protects them. The bill had a clause that would potentially include municipal, provincial, and federally designated buildings.
Stetski feels partisan politics came into play as it was proposed by the conservatives and the Liberals didn’t have good reason to reject it.
Stestki was part of the all-party committee that made the recommendation for the tax credit. He hopes the Liberals come up with a proposal of their own in their next few months.