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TOURISM

B&BS pancaked by pandemic

THE CHRONICLE HERALD bspurr@herald.ca @Billspurr

Labi Kousoulis shouldn't be expecting warm muffins in the morning from bed and breakfast owners.

A group of aggrieved B&B owners wrote to the inclusive economic growth minister and to the premier, wondering why they were left out of the economic assistance the province announced this week.

“The property tax rebate doesn't include us because we pay the residential property tax, so it only includes accommodations with five or more rooms, which are paying commercial tax,” Cathie Watson of By the Bay Bed and Breakfast in Glen Margaret said in an interview Friday.

“But, you know, I have a five thousand-square-foot home and I live alone. I bought this house specifically to be a bed and breakfast, and I wouldn't be paying this kind of property tax if I didn't have a bed and breakfast.”

Watson said the province's decision in 2019 to deregulate short-term accommodations harmed B&B owners, who now feel they aren't even looked at as business operators.

“We were always asking them to repeal the Tourism Accommodation Act ... but our intention was that all short-term accommodations would then become regulated,” said Watson.

“But when they repealed it and brought out a new registration form, they said anybody renting four or less rooms in an owner-occupied space does not need to be registered. Well, that's all B&BS. So instead of levelling the playing field, it brought us all down to the Airbnb level, or any of those unregulated short-term accommodations.

“And I don't know what the percentage is, but most of the previously licensed bed and breakfasts collect HST. So, here we are, collecting taxes for the government and now they're ignoring us, and we don't have any income.”

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE

After cabinet on Thursday, Kousoulis was asked about the complaint by B&B owners that they don't qualify for help under any programs.

“The program just announced ... part three of the impact grant, is for businesses forced to shut down during the third wave. As accommodation sites, they were not ordered to close and they can still have revenue,” the minister said.

“There are tons of programs out there. These are just single programs we are announcing. There are federal programs out there, payroll rebates, they could look at that.”

One program offered by the province this week provided for a one-time grant of 15 per cent of sales revenue for either April 2019 or February 2020.

“These programs coming in now are targeted towards the most severely impacted,” said Kousolis. “If you are comparing a hotel/motel or a large-scale bed and breakfast, it is a much different model to someone living in a home, providing one, two or three rooms as a bed and breakfast.”

Watson said offering the owner of a bed and breakfast a rebate based on revenue from April or February is ridiculous and speaks for itself, and she is pessimistic about the survival of the sector in Nova Scotia.

“Especially in the small communities, the (formerly licensed) bed and breakfasts, the traditional bed and breakfast, are really the backbone of tourism in those small communities,” she said.

“I'm afraid there'll be hardly any of us left.”

CALL FOR HELP

Also on Friday, a dozen business improvement districts in the province, representing more than 4,000 businesses, called for more assistance from the government to help them survive the COVID third wave.

A news release said provincial public health restrictions have forced small businesses to close or operate at a fraction of the capacity that would allow them to be financially sustainable.

“Small businesses are the backbone of our downtowns and main streets,” said Michelle Champniss, executive director of the Sackville Business Association.

“They make our communities vibrant and a desirable destination for locals and visitors alike. The third wave of the pandemic has hit them even harder than the first, with many just barely hanging on and in need of financial help now. The situation is dire.”

The umbrella groups say they recognize that the new public health restrictions are necessary to slow the spread of the virus, but Nova Scotia businesses are looking to government for increased assistance to help them survive.

Among the measures the associations are calling for from the provincial government is an adjustment in restrictions, so large retailers selling nonessential items don't have an unfair advantage over small retailers forced to close for inperson shopping.

“It's the small, locally owned businesses that are just barely hanging on,” said Genevieve Allen Hearn, executive director of Kentville Business Community.

“It's frustrating to see full parking lots in front of bigbox retailers, while our main street businesses rely entirely on online sales or curbside pickup and aren't getting the support they need."

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2021-05-08T07:00:00.0000000Z

2021-05-08T07:00:00.0000000Z

https://saltwire.pressreader.com/article/282007560266019

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