Kindersley council approves bylaw that streamlines mobile home taxes
By Stu Salkeld
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Your West Central Voice
KINDERSLEY – The Town of Kindersley council approved a new bylaw that streamlines tax collection among the community's three mobile home parks. The bylaw was passed at the Aug. 24 regular meeting of council.
Director of Infrastructure and Development Chad Levitt presented councillors with draft Bylaw 07-26, described as classifying and regulating of mobile homes and to license the occupants of mobile homes. During his verbal presentation Levitt stated this bylaw was developed to streamline the collection of fees and taxes from Kindersley's three mobile home parks.
He observed that fee and tax collection for the three mobile home parks had been handled differently and this bylaw would lay out the same rules for everyone.
The new bylaw stated, "The Occupant of a mobile home shall obtain a licence from the Town and pay the Licence Fee. In no case, however, shall more than one Licence Fee be required or permitted to be collected from a mobile home during any monthly period. The Licence Fee shall be payable to the Operator of a Mobile Home Park in accordance with the regulations set forth in this Bylaw."
The draft bylaw listed licence fees payable to the town based on the gross floor area of the mobile home plus the monthly fee to be paid and ranged from a space of less than 30 square feet at a rate of $45 per month to the top rate of 114 or more square meters at a rate of $115 per month.
The bylaw went on to state, "The Operator shall collect from each Occupant the fee as set out in Schedule 'A' based on square footage, at the same time as they collect the fees or charges for the use and occupation of each stall."
It was also noted, "The Operator shall keep a register of all mobile homes on the premises, which register shall include the name of the Occupant and their permanent address, licence number, if any, and the place of issue, together with full particulars of the stall retained and the entry and termination date."
The bylaw noted that short-term occupancy had different rules, such that the bylaw doesn't apply to an occupant who occupies a mobile home for less than 30 days.
The bylaw also included consequences for violations. "Every person who contravenes any provision of this Bylaw is guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to a fine of not less than $100 and not more than $2,000 in the case of an individual and $5,000 in the case of a corporation."
Councillors passed all required readings of the draft bylaw to bring it into effect immediately.