While it’s well known the local lawn bowling greens are located on a flood plain, Minto council recently learned the land is also stuck in a time warp.
Council has deferred action on a plan to acquire the former Harriston Lawn Bowling Club property until it can clarify some conditions in a proposed agreement with the public trustee. Council is concerned about a segment of the agreement that would require it to retroactively pay the trustee “fair market value” for the property, should the town ever decide to change the recreational use.
Treasurer Gordon Duff stated at the April 19 meeting the town has been working for nearly two years on a plan to acquire the property.
A report presented at the meeting explained staff have been discussing the future of the property with members of the lawn bowling club.
The report notes the group continues to maintain and use the facility on Arthur Street but has sustainability concerns mainly due to costs for insurance and property taxes. The remaining members agreed the land could be transferred to the town and that lawn bowling would run as a municipal program.
“Our lawyer got into some very interesting detective work when he was doing that and found out that, legally, the club dissolved in 1963,” explained Duff.
“That’s like the guys that are still fighting World War Two out there,” quipped councillor Ron Faulkner.
“It did not slow them down at all. They bowled through it all … 50 years they continued to bowl,” Duff said.
The town’s solicitor determined the land was transferred to the Harriston Lawn Bowling Club on Nov. 27, 1920. The club dissolved sometime in January 1963, though “members continued to operate on the property as if the club was still in place. The club is still listed as owner on the tax roll.”
“In fairness to the bowlers, they’ve been paying the taxes,” Mayor George Bridge pointed out.
The staff report notes the taxes have actually been paid by individuals on behalf of the club, as it did not have any legal status.
The solicitor advised that in the absence of a private or corporate owner, the Public Guardian and Trustee for the Province of Ontario technically owns the land. The agency would not agree to transfer the land to the town unless there was clear notice to remaining members that the town was assuming ownership of the property, and an agreement in place on future use.
Duff explained the agreement calls for the town to acquire the land for a nominal amount of $2. However, the municipality has already paid about $9,500 in legal fees to sort out the matter to this point.
“The reason this all started is MPAC (Municipal Property Assessment Corporation) wanted to issue the tax bill on this as two building lots and were looking for a tax increase on it, so they (the club) were actually going under and we decided to try and help them out,” said Bridge.
“Had we known they actually went under in 1963 … ?”
Duff explained another clause in the proposed agreement stipulates that if the land use changed from parkland or public use, the trustee would have to be consulted again and the town would have to pay the agency fair market value.
“But I don’t think that’s contemplated,” said Duff. “We hope that the club can continue on, but if not it would just be parkland or naturalized.”
Faulkner asked, “if you do something 20 years after – because forever is a long time – you would actually have to go back and pay fair market value?”
Duff explained that is what the agreement in its current form stipulates.
“So let the public trustee take it,” said Bridge.
“No, I’m just kidding,” he added quickly.
Faulkner stated, “I just can’t imagine agreeing to something … to say we’re going to give you fair market value 20 years from now. Is it established at today’s fair market value or 20 years from now?”
“Or how about 50 years ago when they assumed it?” suggested councillor Jean Anderson.
Council deferred action on the matter pending receipt of legal advice regarding the market value provisions.
