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We really may be getting a commercial parking lot levy! This coming to Executive next week: https://secure.toronto.ca/council/agenda-item.do?item=2024.EX12.3
As a result of this research, staff are recommending the following parking levy design principles in the application of a commercial parking levy:
1. Apply a commercial off-street parking levy to the entire City of Toronto;
2. Include both private and publicly owned or operated commercial properties;
3. Include both unpaid and fee-paid parking facilities including surface parking, underground parking and parking garages;
4. Include a minimum area threshold, which provides an automatic exemption for the first 300m2 for all properties (equivalent to approximately 10 parking spaces) to reduce the burden of the levy on small businesses; and
5. Apply a two-zone rate structure based on geographic area:
a. Zone A – Downtown & Central Waterfront
b. Zone B – Entire City of Toronto, excluding Zone A.
The proposed parking levy will apply to properties within the Commercial tax class, and the levy will be calculated based on the total areal extent of the property that is used for parking multiplied by a per-square metre rate. An exemption from the levy will apply for the first 300 square metres for all properties. In addition to the mandatory statutory exemptions from taxation established under Section 268 of the City of Toronto Act, it is recommended that the property tax exemptions of Section 3 of the Assessment Act also apply for various property types. Staff are also recommending refining the definition of “parking area” to exclude certain situations where parking is directly associated with a business use, e.g., vehicle storage for certain commercial operations, as explained later in the report.
As a result of this research, staff are recommending the following parking levy design principles in the application of a commercial parking levy:
1. Apply a commercial off-street parking levy to the entire City of Toronto;
2. Include both private and publicly owned or operated commercial properties;
3. Include both unpaid and fee-paid parking facilities including surface parking, underground parking and parking garages;
4. Include a minimum area threshold, which provides an automatic exemption for the first 300m2 for all properties (equivalent to approximately 10 parking spaces) to reduce the burden of the levy on small businesses; and
5. Apply a two-zone rate structure based on geographic area:
a. Zone A – Downtown & Central Waterfront
b. Zone B – Entire City of Toronto, excluding Zone A.
The proposed parking levy will apply to properties within the Commercial tax class, and the levy will be calculated based on the total areal extent of the property that is used for parking multiplied by a per-square metre rate. An exemption from the levy will apply for the first 300 square metres for all properties. In addition to the mandatory statutory exemptions from taxation established under Section 268 of the City of Toronto Act, it is recommended that the property tax exemptions of Section 3 of the Assessment Act also apply for various property types. Staff are also recommending refining the definition of “parking area” to exclude certain situations where parking is directly associated with a business use, e.g., vehicle storage for certain commercial operations, as explained later in the report.
