The Kamloops Curling Club is set to find some relief from a tax bill which has been squeezing the finances of the decades-old institution.
City Council has approved a partial tax exemption for the 75 year old club, meaning the not-for-profit organization will undergo a review by the BC Assessment Authority to determine which parts of the downtown club will be taxable.
General Manager Rob Nordin says at this point, they don’t know how much they’ll be saving in taxes.
“You know, if it was based on square footage, it would be substantial. Probably in the $20,000 range. But you know, it’s hard to say how they’ll make that assessment.”
After unexpectedly losing its tax-exempt status last year due to its ability to generate funds through its lounge, concession and pro-shop, the Kamloops Curling Club was hit with a roughly 29-thousand dollar tax bill.
This had the club looking at the potential of raising membership fees this year by $50 to $60 per person, according to Nordin.
However, he says that isn’t going to happen at this point, saying they hope to keep their costs for drinks and food at the club virtually the same this year as well.
“We knew what the amount was going to be, and we made that decision that we would hold back on passing that through to the members this year, because we do have a contingency fund that can absorb it.”
But going forward, Nordin says decisions will have to be made about ways to off-set the taxes they may still have to pay.
“Probably be a little more aggressive with going after business now that we’re on this level playing field with other businesses. We kind of stuck away from advertising to other businesses to come for lunches, and that type of thing, but we might look at that now.”
The loss of of its tax-exempt status last year was just the latest challenge the Kamloops Curling Club had been facing.
The lease for its use of the historic curling rink at 700 Victoria Street comes up at the end of 2025.
Discussions have been underway to possibly amalgamate the Kamloops Curling Club with the MacArthur Island Curling Club as the City moves forward on plans to potentially create new ice facilities, something Nordin says remains an open question for Club members.
“We’ve had one meeting with the City and the Sports Council,” said Nordin. “I know they want to build a new arena. Then again, we’ve got to figure out what that looks like, [and] where it is. There are people [club members] who want to keep it here, and think this is all we need.”
The Kamloops Curling Club was founded in 1947, with the original 4-sheet rink built at the corner of 7th and Victoria built two years later, in 1949.