To the Editor:
Let’s face it. Nanaimo taxpayers are getting hosed by a few vocal anchor weights.
Since the Port Theatre opened in 1998 it’s been funded by the city to the tune of half a million dollars a year.
There’s that white elephant on Commercial Street that’s expected to post a $100,000 deficit by the end of this year. Since opening in 2008 the Vancouver Island Conference Centre has gone over budget three times and taxpayers subsidize it almost $1 million annually.
The Downtown Nanaimo Business Improvement Association gets over half a million dollars a year in taxes to operate, with well over half the budget going towards wages and administration. A paltry one-quarter of the budget makes it to marketing the downtown and holding events.
Once the tax money tap has been opened for these outfits it’s hard to shut off. The groups pat themselves on the back and say anything just to keep the windfall flowing.
Council definitely needs to step up to the plate in the New Year and stop these disasters from continuing.
Kevan ShawNanaimo