Georgetown Mayor Patricia Chase-Green on Friday said that a $25,000 tax will only be charged for containers that are parked outside of a business place.
She made the disclosure after meeting with members of the Private Sector Commission (PSC) and the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) which had voiced concern about the tax.
During the meeting, several other issues came up such as the payment of Rates and Taxes by business owners and the proposed parking meters. The private sector had requested to meet with the mayor over concerns it had about the container tax and the parking meters.
Chase-Green in a comment after the meeting said that the discussions were fruitful and questions asked were given answers. She told Stabroek News that the discussions were held as a part of continuous dialogue between City Hall, the PSC and GCCI.
During the meeting, it was clarified that businesses only need to pay the container tax if the containers are stored outside of the business premises. The private sector had sought this clarification.
The issue of the controversial parking meters was not widely discussed since the PSC and GCCI were told that the contract is still with the Attorney General’s Chambers for review. The private sector was however told that negotiations on the rate for the parking meters were ongoing and it would be less than the $500 per hour which had been mooted previously.
The PSC and GCCI were urged to encourage business entities to pay their rates and taxes in order to improve the city’s finances.
President of the GCCI, Vishnu Doerga, declined to comment on Friday when contacted by Stabroek News. He said that the chamber has to meet to discuss the outcome of the deliberations.
Town Clerk Royston King had told Stabroek News in June that businesses unloading containers in the city were already being charged $25,000.
“Council decided some years ago to charge for the offloading of containers on city streets. They were of the belief that businesses should compensate the city for the use of the space which is collectively owned by all citizens. The fee is expected to aid in speedy clearance of the public spaces,” King explained. Asked how the sum was arrived at, King said it was calculated based on the average size of containers being unloaded within city boundaries. King did not provide any information on when the public was notified of the implementation of the tax.
Chairman of the PSC, Eddie Boyer had said then that he was unaware that this charge had been implemented.
“If they have started charging then none of our members are paying. I had not heard about this fee until today,” Boyer, who is the Director and Company Secretary of National Hardware Guyana Limited noted. Boyer added that he expected the discussions with the M&CC to be lengthy and in-depth.
