The Freemasons say skyrocketing property taxes may force the closure of its historic hall in the southwest and the group is looking to the city for help to ease the tax burden.
The Calgary Masonic Temple on 12th Avenue S.W. has stood tall for 90 years and the Freemasons say property taxes for the location have tripled in the last decade.
The group says property taxes were $50,000 per year about ten years ago and that next year’s bill is expected to be between $150,000 and $160,000.
“We have reached a point where we can no longer continue because the costs are insurmountable,” said Ilya Raykhlin, Master Mason at Bow River Lodge
The building has been there since 1928 and several masonic groups use the space on a regular basis.
Revenue is collected from renting the building, its parking lot and membership dues but the group says it is running out of ways to cover the costs and that it may soon be forced to sell the property and relocate.
“We had a real estate committee set up to explore every opportunity imaginable. Obtaining heritage status, converting this to a museum and every, single solution that was explored either led to higher costs to us, to our organization, or simply wasn't manageable over the long term,” said Raykhlin.
The Freemasons say that the only options are tax exemptions or relief from the city.
“So we've gone to the city, we've looked for tax exemption, we were unsuccessful in doing so. We've looked for tax relief. We were, at some point, able to get the city to provide us with that but they are no longer providing us even with tax relief,” added Raykhlin.
Ward 11 Councillor Jeromy Farkas says he is working with the Freemasons to come up with a plan to ease the tax burden and save the building.
He says the group should be seen as a charitable organization and that he would support a motion to give the group a tax exemption or even cancel taxes for the year while they work on a long-term solution.
(With files from Jordan Kanygin)
