Timmins Chamber of Commerce president Val Venneri agrees with Timmins Economic Development CEO Christy Marinig, that small retailers will be hurt the most by restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic.
He points out that a lot of workers have already been laid off, and more will be.
“I don’t see an end in the next week or so,” he glumly predicts. “This is probably going to take some time for this to get under control.”
The Timmins Chamber of Commerce has written to city council, asking for several measures to protect businesses through the pandemic. Venneri says several of them should apply to the public, too.
Temporary measures requested by Chamber:
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Interest-free deferral of property tax installments scheduled for May 29, 2020;
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Interest-free deferral of water/wastewater payments for all businesses;
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Cancellation of daily fixed cost water/wastewater charges for high water-usage businesses including hotels and restaurants;
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Elimination of all parking fees in business areas;
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Cancellation of development service department fees (building, planning, zoning) to stimulate construction activities; and
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Cancellation of all business-related permit fees including signage permit fees.
Venneri adds that the new municipal accommodation tax can support recovery of the hospitality industry.
(Bob McIntyre, MyTimminsNow,com staff)