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Youth Centre
638 Princess Avenue Brandon, MB
Phone 204-729-2516
Q. Will I receive an Accommodation Tax Grant advance if I am approved for funding under the Annual Event of Significant Economic Impact funding category.
A. No, approved events are not eligible for grant advances. The grant is paid at the conclusion of the event after the City of Brandon receives a final report on the supplied form and verifies room counts.
Annual Events of Significant Economic Impact Application Form
Q. What are the eligibility criteria?
A. The event must have been held in Brandon annually for a minimum of 5 consecutive years or have signed a hosting agreement whereby the years in which the event has been held in Brandon combined with the duration of the hosting / venue agreement total a minimum of 5 consecutive years. The event room must also generate a minimum of 1,500 room nights that are subject to the Accommodation Tax. Annual events that alternate annually between Brandon and other centres are not eligible and campground and trailer park stays are not considered eligible room nights.
Q. How much will the annual grant be?
A. The annual grant is calculated at a rate of $7 per room night, using the previous years realized room night counts, provided they have been confirmed by the City of Brandon. For events that meet the eligibility criteria but previous years room nights have not been verified by the City of Brandon, current year room nights verified by city of Brandon staff will be used to calculate the grant.
Q. If my event has been eligible for funding under the Annual Event of Significant Economic Impact funding category for several years and then room nights realized drop below the minimum 1,500 room night requirement for one year, am I eligible for funding?
A. You will receive funding in the year that the room nights drop below the minimum threshold as the grant is calculated on the previous year’s realized room nights. However, you will not be eligible for funding the following year and will have to complete the application process again for future funding.
Q. Do we have to notify anyone of our annual event dates?
A. Event organizers are required to notify Economic Development Brandon of the event dates a minimum of 60 days prior to the event each year.
In addition to the general guidelines found here (General Guidelines), the following apply to Event Retention funding applications.
An organization that receives event retention funding through the Accommodation Tax funding program is ineligible to apply for event retention funding again for the same event for a period of 3 years following the year in which event funding was applicable. For example an organization that receives funding for a 2017 event, would not be eligible to apply under the retention category again until 2021.
To be eligible for an Accommodation Tax Grant (Event Grant), an event must generate overnight stays (limited to hotel/motel rooms, Brandon University, B&B rooms) in Brandon. Only events that align with Brandon First marketing strategies are eligible to apply for Accommodation Tax event hosting grants. Personal events such as socials, weddings, and family celebrations are ineligible for Accommodation Tax Grant funding. If you are in doubt as to eligibility for an event hosting grant, please contact Brandon First at 204.729.2156 or info@brandonfirst.com
Application proposals for use of the funds collected through the City of Brandon Accommodation Tax By-Law 7014 will be considered on an ongoing basis by the City of Brandon through application to the Director of Economic Development. Applicants are to select the funding category from the four listed below that best fits the criteria of the event. There are four separate application forms to select from:
1. New Event - This category is typically suitable for applicants looking to bring an existing event to Brandon that has not been held in the City for at least three full consecutive calendar years or create a brand new event to be held in Brandon. Note: Events which are held in Brandon in cycles (such as annual, biennial, triennial, or other regular frequency) must not be held for 3 consecutive event cycles to qualify as new events.
2. Event Retention - This category is typically suitable for an event that has a history of being hosted in Brandon but is in jeopardy of no longer being hosted in Brandon or being shortened as a result of a variety of reasons, including but not limited to finances or a competitive bid from another community.
3. Growing an Existing Event - This category is typically suitable for an event that has a history of being hosted in Brandon but is looking to expand the event in order to attract a new market segment to the event which will result in increased room nights.
4. Capital Enhancements – This category is typically suitable for repairs or upgrades of a capital nature that are required in order to host a specific event in Brandon that generates overnight stays. Capital funding will not be approved to position Brandon to pursue future events or for the purposes of regular maintenance. Non-event capital projects undertaken by the Keystone Centre are handled through a different process than what is described here.
5. Annual Events of Significant Economic Impact – this category is suitable for events held in Brandon for a minimum of five (5) consecutive years that generate a minimum of 1,500 room nights that are subject to the Accommodation Tax (campground stays and Airbnb do not qualify as room nights). Events that alternate between Brandon and another location on an annual basis are not eligible for funding.
Applications must be submitted, reviewed and a decision made by Brandon City Council in advance of the event occurring or capital work beginning.
Requests for funding through the Accommodation Tax Program are reviewed by the Director of Economic Development who in turn approves funding (up to $20,000) or formulates a recommendation (over $20,000) for Brandon City Council.
Should an applicant be unhappy with the Director of Economic Development’s approval or recommendation to Council, they may request to appear as a delegation at the same meeting in which their funding request will be reviewed by Council to state their case and request Council consider approving an Accommodation Tax grant that differs from the Director of Economic Development’s recommendation.
A request to appear as a delegation can be made online http://www.brandon.ca/council-information/delegations-to-council/delegation-request or by contacting the City Clerk’s office at 204 - 729 - 2296. Please note there is a deadline for requesting to appear as a delegation.
Once City Council has approved an Accommodation Tax grant there is no appeal process for their decision, as City Council is the final approving body for all Accommodation Tax grants.
