Several dozen homeowners in a wealthy Vancouver neighbourhood are outraged over a proposed property-tax increase, saying they are being unfairly targeted by the British Columbia government over the dramatic run-up in property value that made them 鈥減aper millionaires.鈥�
Backlash against the government鈥檚 plan for 2019, to increase school taxes on homes assessed above $3 million, was so severe that B.C. Attorney General David Eby cancelled a town hall meeting in his Vancouver-Point Grey riding on Tuesday evening.
He cited safety and security concerns after Liberal Leader Andrew Wilkinson and real estate industry representatives encouraged people without tickets to attend the discussion at St. James Community Square.
鈥淚t was simply out of control,鈥� Eby told CTV Vancouver on Tuesday.
He said students and volunteers tasked with overseeing security would have been put at risk if scores of uninvited guests crashed the meeting.
The tax hike, introduced as part of the , is projected to generate $200 million in the 2019-2020 fiscal year, a four-fold increase from the previous year.
Homeowners expressed outrage at a rally held at Trimble Park in the tony Point Grey neighbourhood Tuesday afternoon. Demonstrators accused the government of seeking to claw back home equity, and called for Eby鈥檚 resignation.
鈥淲e are part of a major group in Vancouver, paper millionaires simply due to the wild increase in the value of the land our houses sit on,鈥� Tamara Knot said at the rally.
鈥淗e should resign,鈥� David Russell said of Eby. 鈥淗e should resign and run again on the platform that he has put forward with this school tax.鈥�
The tax increase will be widely-felt in Vancouver-Point Grey. The provincial electoral district is home to some of B.C.鈥檚 priciest real estate, including Lululemon Athletica founder Chip Wilson鈥檚 house on Point Grey Road, now valued at $78.8 million.
for all residential properties in Metro Vancouver was $1,084,000 in March, a 16.1 per cent year-over-year increase.
However, many argue that the value locked in their pricey homes is unrelated to their actual income.
鈥淚t鈥檚 just a tax on the rich, that鈥檚 all,鈥� Russell said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 just not right.鈥�
鈥淭his tax is an eviction notice to my family,鈥� said Knot.
Eby calls the hike 鈥渕odest鈥� and insists there are measures in place to make sure residents are not displaced as a result of the tax.
鈥淧eople can defer it. There is a subsidized interest rate if they defer taxes if they are seniors, or if they have kids at home,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hey don鈥檛 have to pay it until they sell their home.鈥�
Wilkinson chided Eby for cancelling the town hall due to safety concerns, noting the older age of many in the community.
鈥淗e鈥檚 got a lot to answer for, because these are people who have lived in their homes for 30, 40, 50 years,鈥� the B.C. Liberal Leader said. 鈥淭hey are not a safety threat.鈥�
Eby told 麻豆传媒 he is disappointed that he did not get the opportunity to hear from his constituents, and plans to reschedule the town hall at a larger venue.
With a report from CTV Vancouver鈥檚 Penny Daflos
