Karey Lunau

The appellants appealed the property tax classification of a purpose-built student housing building containing 133 suites with 588 individually rented bedrooms.

The issue was whether the building should be classified as residential or multi-residential, which turned on whether the individual bedrooms or the entire suites constituted "self-contained units" under O. Reg. 282/98.

The Assessment Review Board held that the physical layout of the building and the nature of the occupancy demonstrated that the 133 suites were self-contained units.

The property was therefore placed in the multi-residential tax class.

The applicant municipality sought leave to appeal a decision of the Assessment Review Board that denied its motion to extend the time to appeal property assessments dating back to 2003.

The applicant argued that a palpable error occurred when the respondent incorrectly entered the height of a building as 923 feet instead of 12 feet, resulting in a 272% increase in assessed value.

The Board had refused the extension, finding no evidence of an error for the earlier taxation years.

The Divisional Court granted leave to appeal, finding reason to doubt the legal correctness of the Board's decision because the Board failed to recognize circumstantial evidence of the error and applied an unduly high standard of proof.

MPAC requested a review of a Board decision that found a palpable error in the assessment roll regarding the square footage of the respondent's property.

The original decision extended the time for bringing appeals for the 2004 to 2011 taxation years.

On review, the Board found that the original member erred in finding the inaccurate square footage amounted to a palpable error under s. 40.1 of the Assessment Act.

The Board held that a palpable error must mischaracterize the fundamental nature or legal character of the property, whereas an error in square footage is an error in judgment that should be addressed through a standard appeal.

The request for review was granted, the original decision was set aside, and the motion was dismissed.

The Bluffers Park Yacht Club appealed the property assessments for the 2009-2015 taxation years.

The parties agreed on the cost approach to value and the depreciated value of the improvements, but disputed the land value.

The appellant argued for a lower value based on its lease with the City and land use restrictions, while MPAC relied on comparable sales of parkland.

The Assessment Review Board rejected the lease rate as below market and instead utilized comparable sales of small hazard land parcels on Lake Ontario, adjusting for size.

The Board determined the current value of the property to be $4,404,504 for the 2009-2012 taxation years and $5,409,422 for the 2013-2015 taxation years, and found no basis for an equity adjustment.

The Bluffers Park Yacht Club appealed the property assessments of its site for the 2009 to 2015 taxation years.

The parties agreed on the cost approach to value and the depreciated value of the improvements, leaving only the land value in dispute.

The Assessment Review Board rejected the appellant's reliance on its lease rate with the City, finding it was a below-market rate influenced by political considerations.

The Board also rejected the appellant's comparable sales of large, remote hazard lands.

Instead, the Board relied on sales of small hazard land parcels on Lake Ontario, applying a size adjustment to determine a land value of $4,000,000 for 2008 and $5,000,000 for 2012.

Adding the agreed improvement values, the Board determined the total current value to be $4,404,504 for 2009-2012 and $5,409,422 for 2013-2015, and found no adjustment for equity was required.

A non-profit corporation operating a residence for families of children receiving medical treatment sought exemption from municipal property taxation under s. 3(1)11 of the Assessment Act.

The respondents disputed that the organization provided the “care of children” required by the statutory exemption.

The court held that although the organization did not directly provide childcare, its primary function constituted a “house of refuge” by offering shelter and support to families experiencing hardship while their children received medical treatment.

Interpreting the statutory language in its ordinary meaning and legislative context, the court concluded the facility provided refuge from distress and therefore qualified for the exemption.

The application for tax exemption was granted.

The moving party brought a motion to compel the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation to produce third-party income, expense, and lease information relevant to its property assessment appeals.

Section 53 of the Assessment Act bars the disclosure of such information without a Board order.

The motion was granted on consent, subject to the execution of undertakings of non-disclosure by the moving party's counsel and experts.

The Assessment Review Board issued a procedural order establishing an appeal management plan for multiple property assessment appeals involving the City of Toronto and the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation.

The order sets deadlines for the exchange of statements of issues and responses, and schedules a status conference call to address any unresolved appeals.

The Assessment Review Board issued a procedural order establishing an appeal management plan for multiple property assessment appeals involving the City of Mississauga and the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation.

The order sets deadlines for the exchange of statements of issues, responses, and replies, and schedules a status conference call for unresolved appeals.

The Assessment Review Board issued a procedural order establishing an appeal management plan for multiple property assessment appeals.

The order sets deadlines for the exchange of statements of issues and responses, and schedules a status conference call for February 2017 to address any unresolved appeals.

The Assessment Review Board issued a procedural order establishing an appeal management plan for multiple property assessment appeals in the City of Ottawa for the 2014 and 2015 taxation years.

The order sets out deadlines for the exchange of statements of issues and responses, and schedules a status conference call to address any unresolved appeals.

The Assessment Review Board issued a procedural order establishing an appeal management plan for multiple property assessment appeals.

The order sets out deadlines for the exchange of statements of issues and responses between the appellants and the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation, and schedules a status conference call for unresolved appeals.

The Assessment Review Board issued a procedural order establishing an appeal management plan for property assessment appeals brought by G6 Canada Hospitality Proper against the Town of Whitby and the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation for the 2014 and 2015 taxation years.

The order sets deadlines for the exchange of statements of issues and schedules a status conference call.

The appellant submitted a written request for an order permitting an alternative to personal service of non-parties for a motion to compel MPAC to produce third-party information protected by section 53 of the Assessment Act.

MPAC consented to the request.

The Assessment Review Board granted the order, allowing service by courier or registered mail to the non-parties' legal counsel or addresses on the assessment rolls.

The Assessment Review Board issued a procedural order setting the hearing dates and production schedule for a property assessment appeal brought by the appellant against the City of Markham and MPAC.

The municipality did not serve a Statement of Response and was deemed to have elected not to participate actively.

The Assessment Review Board issued a procedural order establishing an appeal management plan for multiple property assessment appeals involving the Altus Group.

The order sets deadlines for the exchange of statements of issues and responses, and schedules a status conference call to address any unresolved appeals.

The Assessment Review Board issued a procedural order establishing an appeal management plan for multiple property assessment appeals.

The order sets out the schedule for the exchange of assessment data, statements of issues, and responses between the appellants, the assessment corporation, and the municipality.

A status conference call was scheduled to fix further steps for any unresolved properties.

The Assessment Review Board issued a procedural order establishing an appeal management plan for property assessment appeals involving multiple properties.

The order sets out deadlines for the exchange of statements of issues and responses, and schedules a status conference call to fix further steps for any unresolved appeals.

The Assessment Review Board issued a procedural order establishing an appeal management plan for multiple property assessment appeals.

The order sets out deadlines for the exchange of assessment data, statements of issues, and responses between the appellants and the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation.

A status conference call was also scheduled to address any unresolved appeals.

The applicant, a charitable non-profit corporation, sought a declaration that its 40-unit apartment building for low-income seniors was exempt from municipal taxation under s. 3(1) para. 12(iii) of the Assessment Act.

The Municipal Property Assessment Corporation opposed, arguing the applicant merely provided affordable housing rather than relieving poverty.

The court found that the term 'poor' is relative and not limited to the destitute.

Given the tenants' average and median incomes, which closely aligned with Statistics Canada's low-income cut-offs, the court concluded the residents were 'poor' within the meaning of the Act.

The application was allowed and the property was declared exempt from municipal taxation.