Hess Village merchants stress that they are investors in Hamilton and not a drain on resources.
They’ve gone before the planning committee as they continue to argue against a city requirement that they foot the bill for paid duty policing in the downtown entertainment district.
Spokesman Dean Collett, a bar and restaurant owner within Hess Village, insists that the fee is “patently unfair,” noting that Hess Village business owners employ people, pay a collective $300,000 in municipal taxes, and “run our business under the most intense scrutiny.”
For this year, the merchants appear to have won their battle.
Hamilton’s planning committee has unanimously voted to cover the $50,000 paid duty policing cost in 2018 for Hess Village, using a tax stabilization reserve fund.
The committee’s decision still requires final approval from City Council next Wednesday.
The issue dates back to 2010, when the city made it mandatory for Hess Village bar owners to pay out of pocket for policing because of drunkenness and rowdy behaviour.
Collett insists that the district is a “misunderstood place” that has suffered from negative media attention as a result of the program.
Comments