PETITION TO THE COUNTY OF BRANT: RELIEF MEASURES FOR DOWNTOWN PARIS BUSINESSES DURING EXTENSIVE CONSTRUCTION DISRUPTION

To: County of Brant Council
Re: Economic relief, tax relief consideration, and targeted business support for Downtown Paris, Ontario

Background

We, the undersigned residents, business owners, and stakeholders of Paris, Ontario, recognize that Downtown Paris is currently undergoing significant and prolonged construction activity (“downtown dig” and related infrastructure work). This work, while intended to improve long-term municipal infrastructure, has resulted in:

Reduced foot traffic and customer access to downtown businesses

Ongoing disruption from road closures, detours, noise, and limited parking

Increased operational difficulty for small and independent businesses

Compounded financial strain in an already fragile post-pandemic retail environment

Simultaneously, businesses are being asked to continue contributing to local Business Improvement Association (BIA) levies and municipal taxation obligations during this disruption period.

Core Concerns

Disproportionate Financial Burden
Businesses are bearing revenue losses directly tied to publicly initiated construction projects.

Fixed costs (rent, wages, taxes, levies) remain unchanged despite reduced income.

Insufficient Immediate Relief Tools
Current supports such as encouragement campaigns or small contests do not offset operational losses.

Loan-based solutions increase long-term debt burdens rather than providing relief.

Need for Coordinated Recovery Strategy

Downtown recovery requires immediate liquidity support and demand stimulation, not delayed or symbolic measures.

Requests to the County of Brant

We respectfully petition the County to implement the following measures:

1. Temporary Municipal Tax Relief

Waive or rebate municipal business-related property taxes for Downtown Paris businesses for a minimum period of one (1) year, or for the duration of major construction disruption, whichever is longer.

2. BIA Levy Suspension or Offset

Suspend or fully rebate Business Improvement Association levies during the same relief period.
Alternatively, fully offset BIA dues through municipal funding during construction disruption.

3. Emergency Downtown Business Grant Program

Establish a direct grant program (non-repayable) for affected businesses.

Funding to be used for:

Adaptive marketing (“unmarketing” and disruption-era promotion strategies) advertising, and customer retention initiatives

Operational stabilization during reduced traffic conditions

4. Construction Impact Recovery Strategy

Publish a coordinated downtown mitigation plan including:

Clear construction timelines and phases

Business access maintenance strategies

Parking and pedestrian flow solutions
Weekly communication updates to merchants and residents. 

Rationale

This petition is grounded in economic fairness and practical municipal recovery strategy. Businesses impacted by public infrastructure projects should not be left to absorb the full financial consequences of those projects without meaningful, immediate compensation or relief.

Short-term fiscal relief and direct grant support will:

Prevent permanent business closures
Preserve downtown economic viability

Maintain employment levels
Accelerate post-construction recovery

Call to Action

We urge the County of Brant to act swiftly in adopting meaningful, measurable relief measures rather than symbolic engagement efforts.