WEST ARICHAT: The priest overseeing Isle Madame’s two Catholic parishes is questioning the timing of a tax bill regarding a former church that now serves as a pastoral centre for the region, just as Richmond County’s municipal councillors prepare to vote on granting the building tax-exempt status.
The Catholic Episcopal Corporation of Antigonish – which handles the financial affairs of the Diocese of Antigonish, its parishes and its pastoral units – received a notice of tax sale in the amount of $1,871.10 from the Municipality of Richmond County early in January, with a directive to pay the full amount by January 26 or face additional charges.
The bill arrived less than a month after Fr. Doug MacDonald spoke to council regarding the potential expansion of the municipality’s By-Law #56 to include the subject of the tax sale notice, the former Immaculate Conception Church in West Arichat, which was repurposed as the Stella Maris Pastoral Centre after the church shut down in late 2014.
“In recent months, I have received a tax bill for the Stella Maris Pastoral Centre in West Arichat. While this was appealed with the Property Valuation Services Corporation, and requests were made for exemptions to the Municipality of Richmond County pursuant to By-Law #56, I recently received a 14-day notice of tax sale for the Stella Maris Pastoral Centre, including its chapel, from the Municipality of the County of Richmond,” Fr. MacDonald recalled in a statement made to The Reporter Sunday evening.
“As a result, an extensive review of all Catholic Episcopal Corporation of Antigonish properties was conducted on Isle Madame, including two properties in Petit de Grat being operated as baseball fields on the lands of the Catholic Episcopal Corporation. The timing of the 14-day tax sale notice by the Municipality of Richmond County is contrary to [Nova Scotia’s] Municipal [Government] Act and has also led to an insurance review on all properties including both baseball fields, both [parish] halls and other properties.”
In the meantime, a notice of motion put forward by Warden Brian Marchand at the latest regular monthly meeting of Richmond Municipal Council will see a formal vote on the expansion of the municipality’s By-Law #56 later this winter to include Stella Maris Pastoral Centre.
Marchand noted at council’s January 23 regular meeting that he wished to replicate the tax-exempt status of the previous pastoral office in Petit de Grat, which also included the Isle Madame Food Bank that has also re-located to West Arichat.
“Since we had given an exemption for the previous [pastoral] office and food bank [location], I felt that it was imperative that we do it now,” Marchand explained.
However, the warden’s notice of motion drew fire from district 1 councilor James Goyetche, who suggested that municipal by-laws should not necessarily undergo alterations to suit individual requests.
“I don’t think it’s the responsibility of council to change a by-law for everybody that comes before council to suit the individuals or the groups or the organizations that come before council,” Goyetche declared.
Marchand pointed out that the entire by-law is slated to go under review later this year, and district 2 councillor Alvin Martell suggested that the municipality now has the necessary information to properly review the tax-exemption request put forward by Fr. MacDonald in December.
“The reason for tabling it and going back to staff was to find out more information on whether we could do that without having a domino effect that would interfere with other entities that were being exempted or that had to pay tax,” Martell explained.
“I think we’ve got that information now.”