Duane Hicks
With the old Rainy Lake Hotel sitting vacant for the past five years, an area businessman is pitching an idea to save the building and create a small business complex.
In a letter received by council Monday night, Mario Galluzzo, president of Causeway General Insurance Brokers Ltd., said the Northern Lights Credit Union is willing to sell the building to the local Business Improvement Association for $1, creating “an opportunity to save the building, create short-term employment, provide a space to encourage small business development, and provide stable tax revenue for the town.”
“The building should be deemed a historical building and converted into a small business office complex, which will allow fledgling entrepreneurs a place to start and grow a business,” Galluzzo wrote.
“This, in turn, will generate economic activity locally and provide a stable tax revenue for the town,” he explained.
“The funding for the conversion could come from the Northern Ontario Heritage Development Fund, which will create a mini-stimulus boost for the town,” Galluzzo added.
“Once completed, the refurbished building will serve as a starting point for small businesses that are lacking capital to get their operation off the ground or are currently operating from their homes.
“It has always been an accepted fact that small business generates more economic activity than big business, and we have an opportunity to bring a value-added proposition and economic diversity to the community rather than creating another expense for the taxpayer to deal with,” he remarked.
Galluzzo said there has been some talk of getting rid of the building to convert the lot into “green space,” and that the local BIA even has commissioned a study on the subject.
But he feels this isn’t the best solution.
“We must take a serious look at the effects of the removal of the building on both the abutting property owners and the town as a whole,” he stressed.
“The property generated $20,000 per year in tax revenue annually. If the building is removed, where are those tax dollars going to come from?” Galluzzo wondered.
“The local business and property owners will have to absorb the costs, which will add an increased financial burden in times of economic uncertainty, which may push some businesses over the edge,” he warned.
“What will the cost be to the taxpayer to build, maintain, and police an open green space in the middle of the downtown core? What economic benefit will a green space bring to the local businesses of Scott Street and area?
“The idea of demolition will provide a negative benefit to the town and the property owners of Scott Street and area in both the short- and long-term,” Galluzzo noted.
Council referred Galluzzo’s letter to the Planning and Development executive committee for its recommendation, with input from the Administration and Finance executive committee and Economic Development Advisory Committee.
