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March 12, 2019
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Brandon, MB – The City of Brandon and the Brandon Municipal Heritage Advisory Committee (MHAC) are pleased to officially recognize the Brandon Chamber of Commerce as the first successful recipient of municipal property tax relief through its updated Municipal Heritage Incentive Program, following the Chamber of Commerce’s recent completion of exterior repairs to its office building in downtown Brandon.
The Brandon Chamber of Commerce Building, also known as the Merchants Bank Building, is located at 1043 Rosser Avenue and possesses significant heritage value in Brandon, as it was built by one of the community’s first financial institutions and holds both a provincial and municipal heritage site designation. However, as it was originally built in 1907, its exterior walls have degraded with age. As such, it was the perfect candidate for the City’s recently-bolstered Municipal Heritage Incentive Program, which provides property tax abatement on a percentage of eligible costs for the preservation, restoration or rehabilitation of “heritage character elements” of buildings or properties with a municipal heritage site designation.
Necessary work on the Brandon Chamber of Commerce Building began in August of 2018 and included the restoration of the brick and stone façades on the building’s north and east sides, as well as improvements to waterproofing and building protection. Work was completed in December of 2018 and based on the program’s formula for property tax abatement, it’s estimated that the Chamber of Commerce could see upwards of $50,000 in regular property tax savings during the next 10 years.
“The City of Brandon and the Brandon Municipal Heritage Advisory Committee are very pleased that the Brandon Chamber of Commerce was able to successfully leverage the program to conduct some much-needed repairs to their building’s exterior,” said Shaun Cameron, Brandon City Councillor and MHAC Co-Chair. “As the Brandon Chamber of Commerce building is truly representative of Brandon’s early years of growth, there certainly is a public interest in ensuring the building remains viable and strong for years to come.”
“The Brandon Chamber of Commerce is pleased to take a leadership role in the preservation and restoration of our historic Downtown building,” added Carolynn Cancade, General Manager of the Brandon Chamber of Commerce. “We are extremely fortunate to have called this building home over the last 30 years, and thanks in part to the Municipal Heritage Incentive Program assisting with some much-needed restoration, our building will continue to stand as an iconic piece of Brandon’s history for many years to come.”
Cameron noted that with nearly two dozen other municipally-designated heritage sites in Brandon, there is definitely more potential for eligible property owners in Brandon to benefit from the incentive program. More information on the City of Brandon’s Municipal Heritage Incentive Program can be found at http://heritagebrandon.ca/.
