'We were shocked': 11 property owners may have to pay $1.6M in improvement fees

A group of residents in the city's Old Kildonan area are reeling after receiving notices of massive proposed fees from the city in order to pay for local improvements they say they didn't want in the first place.

Amber Gates, a new development approved for the area, requires a new road and water and sewer hook-ups.

At least one resident has been hit with a proposed bill of $361,000. Others face bills ranging from $76,000 to $254,000.

"We were shocked and appalled. We could not believe that we were just being sent this information," said Cherry Karpyshin, a resident who received a proposed bill of $76,000.

"It was a feeling of doom. I knew right there that it would mean financial ruin to us," said another resident, Arie Brienen, whose bill is projected to be nearly $82,000.

The group of 11 residential property owners along the south side of Templeton Avenue between McPhillips Street and Pipeline Road received the notices in September but are set to opposethe fees at a community committee meeting next week at City Hall.

The proposed fees are part of a local improvement process that Genstar, a development company that owns the land on the north side of Templeton, can access through their development agreement with the city.

Property owners may have to pay $1.6M in improvement fees

8 years ago

Duration 1:57

A group of residents in the city's Old Kildonan area are reeling after receiving notices of massive proposed fees from the city in order to pay for local improvements they say they didn't want in the first place.

According to a citybylaw, a developer can apply to recover costs of local improvementssuch asbuilding roads, sewersand sidewalksby seeking a cost-sharing arrangement from property owners who would benefit from the improvements.

The costs are distributed based on property frontage, not individual residences, which is why the proposed fees rangefrom $76,000up to $361,000 for each property, depending on the size of thelot.

The area had previously been rural with a gravel road. Each home had itsown well and septic tank. Some of the residents, all in their 50sor older,have lived there for decades. Tworesidents have lived on the streetsince birth.

The property owners on the south side say they knew about the new development being built and knew that the road was set to be paved, but didn't know it could come at their expense.

"We were all shocked. Because it meant that the city was proposing that we were going to have to pay for the sewer, the water, the drainage, the paving of the road, the sidewalks, the trees, the lighting, everything," said Karpyshin.

"I had just assumed that the city was paying for it, because I had never heard of anyone having to pay, other than when your property taxes increase."

Now, the residents feel they are subsidizing the project.

"If a developer wants to put in a development, go ahead. But you're going tosell the lots, you're going tomake the money, you pay for the local improvements," Karpyshin said.

'Did they just look at numbers?'

According to the City of Winnipeg Charter, in order to object to the improvement fees, the registered owners of 60 per cent of the total frontage of affected properties must be against it.

That means thecity does not consider the percentage of property owners who object, butdecides based on the percentage of frontage they own, or how much of their property touches the improved area.

"I just wonder, did anyone look at the people? Did they just look at numbers?" said Karpyshin.

"There is at least 1,200 people that are going to live [in the new development]. So we are paying 50 per cent of the costs but we are only oneper cent of the population. Like, it doesn't even make any sense," she said.

The group of residents say because Genstar owns the property on north side of the street, and has entered an agreement with one of the property owners on the south, they worry that they will have the majority of frontage feet, and therefore have more say in pushing the fees forward.

The city administration recommends that eightof the 11 proposed improvement fees not proceed but ultimately, it's up to the committeeto decide.

The city councillor for the area, Devi Sharma, met with the residents to hear their concerns and is reviewing the file but couldn't say how the committee plans to proceed. The decision has been held over twice while the committee waits for more information.

Genstar development manager Marc Brown says the development will have 360to 370 single-family dwellings, as well as some apartment blocks.

He says the improvements were all part of the the plan presented tocity council in 2015 when the subdivision was approved, and the plans will go ahead regardless of what the committee decides.

"These services, the road, the water, the sewer, the land drainage, is going to increase the value of their land substantially," said Brown.

He says the cost-recovery process is initiated by the city, not the developer.

More costs coming

The proposed improvement fees are in addition to the residents' annual property taxes, and even though the residents can opt to have the payments spread out over a number of years, they would still be looking at annual tax bills in the tens of thousands of dollars.

The fees would also be subject to interest if the residents choose to spread the payments over a number of years.

The property owners also face added costs to hook up to the water and sewer lines, which are already partially installed. According to an estimatethe group obtained from a contractor, that will cost each of them approximately $24,000. Each resident is required to hook up to the sewer within in the next five years or before selling their property.

Karpyshin says that puts them in a difficult situation.

"Our hands are tied, if we want to get out now we can't, and if we did, the person who was moving into the house would have to pick up those costs," she said.

Karpyshin says whatever fees are owed will be transferred with their properties. She says they have also been told they cannot add any further approaches if they want to subdivide their properties.

Karpyshin and the other residents can't help but wonder if they are being backed into a corner deliberately.

"Was the plan, the cunning plan, that none of us could afford to pay these fees so we'd have to sell our houses at reduced costs to get out?" she said.

"We are not objecting to the progress what we are objecting to is the enormous amount of money. Most of us are retired. There's threepeople on the street that are working."