'Very long time to recover': Calgary's hospitality industry asks city for more help
Calgary's hotels are still hurting amid the COVID-19 pandemic and officials are asked to take action, says a letter addressed to city council released Thursday.
The document, from the Calgary Hotel Association (CHA), says while it's grateful the city has agreed to defer municipal property taxes until the end of this year, the industry is still suffering immense financial losses.
That is why it is now requesting an abatement of all utility fees and municipal taxes from Jan. 1 to May 31.
"With the impacts of the new Omicron COVID variant, and more so the impact of the U.S. government's appeal for Americans not to travel to Canada, the result has been disaster for Calgary's hotels," wrote Sol Zia, executive director of the CHA.
"The examples of lost revenue can be seen throughout Calgary and not just downtown."
Zia also says that projections for 2022 indicate lost revenue of more than $500 million, losses that could spell doom for many Calgary entrepreneurs.
"More than half of Calgary's hotels are family-owned and operated businesses, and save Q3 2021, all hotel owners, have been underwriting the operation, payroll, taxes and utilities since March of 2020. Calgary hotels are struggling with cash flow and the ability to cover basic operation, utility and people costs," Zia said.
The CHA says the provincial government has also been contacted with a similar request. That level of government has already abated the Alberta Tourism Levy until March 31, but the CHA wants to see that extended until May 31 for all hotels that can show a 40 per cent or greater drop in revenue.
"The CHA is asking the City of Calgary to consider abatement, following the same formula (40 per cent documented change in revenue for comparable period(s) in 2019), as the government of Alberta, of all City-administered utility fees and all municipal taxes (commercial and otherwise) from Jan. 1, 2022 to May. 31, 2022," Zia wrote.
Zia adds the hospitality industry believes those measures will help prevent hotels from closing due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
"It is clear that Calgary's accommodation sector will take a very long time to recover, and the recovery will be well into the future," Zia said.
"We ask that your government expand its support for Calgary's hotels and are prepared to work closely with you on a plan and course of action to support those hotels in the most precarious situations."
CTV News has reached out to the City of Calgary for a statement on the CHA's letter.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Doctors ask Liberal government to reconsider capital gains tax change
The Canadian Medical Association is asking the federal government to reconsider its proposed changes to capital gains taxation, arguing it will affect doctors' retirement savings.
Keeping these exotic pets is 'cruel' and 'dangerous,' Canadian animal advocates say
Canadian pet owners are finding companionship beyond dogs and cats. Tigers, alligators, scorpions and tarantulas are among some of the exotic pets they are keeping in private homes, which pose risks to public safety and animal welfare, advocates say.
Prince William and wife Kate thank public for birthday messages for son Louis
Prince William and his wife Kate thanked the public for their messages which had been sent to mark the sixth birthday of their youngest son Louis on Tuesday.
She was the closest she'd ever been to meeting her biological father. Then life dealt her a blow
Anne Marie Cavner was the closest she'd ever been to meeting her biological father, but then life dealt her a blow. From an unexpected loss to a host of new relationships, a DNA test changed her life, and she doesn't regret a thing.
How quietly promised law changes in the 2024 federal budget could impact your day-to-day life
The 2024 federal budget released last week includes numerous big spending promises that have garnered headlines. But, tucked into the 416-page document are also series of smaller items, such as promising to amend the law regarding infant formula and to force banks to label government rebates, that you may have missed.
Which foods have the most plastics? You may be surprised
'How much plastic will you have for dinner, sir? And you, ma'am?' While that may seem like a line from a satirical skit on Saturday Night Live, research is showing it's much too close to reality.
'Catch-and-kill' strategy to be a focus as testimony resumes in Trump hush money case
A veteran tabloid publisher was expected to return to the witness stand Tuesday in Donald Trump's historic hush money trial.
Quebec farmers have been protesting since December. Is anyone listening?
Upset about high interest rates, growing paperwork and heavy regulatory burdens, protesting farmers have become a familiar sight across Quebec since December.
South Korean sentenced to 14 months in jail for killing 76 cats
South Korean man has been sentenced to 14 months in prison for killing 76 cats in one of the country's most gruesome cases of animal cruelty in recent years.