Saskatoon mayor says he'd rather not take province to court over grants-in-lieu
Charlie Clark says legal action would be costly, prefers to negotiate with province
The mayor of Saskatoon says he'd rather not take the Saskatchewan government to court over the contentious issue of recently-scrapped grants-in-lieu.
"Ultimately, I would actually rather work this out through a direct dialogue and a renewed agreement as opposed to spending money on lawyers and court fees," said Mayor Charlie Clark on Friday.
The comment is the latest in a series of recent developments that appeared to somewhat ease tensions around the province's decision to discontinue the grants. They were previously provided to municipalities in place of property taxes paid by Crown Corporations, such as SaskPower and SaskEnergy.
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The change, which was part of the province's March 22 budget, left Saskatoon city councillors with a multi-million-dollar hole in their 2017 budget. They are now facing a potential 6.97-per-cent property tax hike in 2018, partly as a result of the cut.
In March, councillors vowed to explore legal action against the province, including an injunction against the legislation that would permanently end the grants.
The Saskatchewan government then contemplated a clause in Bill 64 that would have prevented the city from suing the province.
But when Bill 64 was passed last week, that clause was removed.
"That changes the entire conversation now, because section six would have prohibited us completely from seeking legal action against the province," said Ward 1 Councillor Darren Hill.
"There's been some indication from a couple ministers that they're interested in entering conversations around property tax for those buildings."
Legal option on pause, says mayor
Clark did not completely discount the possibility of legal action, saying that he wants talks with the province on a replacement program for the grants to begin "sooner rather than later."
"It was one option in the toolbox, and so I would say it's still in abeyance while we establish what we can achieve through negotiation," he said.
But he added that court action would not automatically mean victory — and it would be costly.
"We don't want to throw good money after bad if there's no chance of winning and also if we can achieve a renewed program through direct negotiation which doesn't cost us money in the same way," he said.
SUMA 'reassessing' its legal options
Clark added that the city will ultimately take a co-ordinated approach with the Saskatchewan Urban Municipalities Association (SUMA).
A spokesperson for SUMA could not be reached for comment.
In a press release issued Friday, the association said it was "thankful" for the removal of section six from Bill 64.
"We are currently in the process of consulting with legal counsel to reassess our options on this matter," it added.
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