One of UNEQ’s main reasons for justifying the controversial sale of the writer’s house – the end of the property tax exemption – would not have been an issue until 2027 at the earliest, La Presse learned. And the historic Square Saint-Louis building, inaugurated in 1992 thanks to $600,000 in public funding, could very well benefit from a new property tax exemption as it continues its mission of promoting literature.
Posted at 5:00 am
The Union of Quebec Writers (UNEQ) has made the sale of its headquarters at 3492 Laval Street one of the “highlights” of its 2023-2025 plan of action, a decision that caused an outcry in the literary community. In recent days, the union executive has been accused of secretly deciding the destiny of the Maison des écrivains without officially consulting members.
To justify the sale, the management cites not only the regular maintenance and expensive renovations of the building, but above all the “high property taxes”.
“The exemption obtained following a Montreal City Court ruling is under regular review and its impending suspension will significantly increase the tax burden,” writes UNEQ in a newsletter published on its website December 15 last year.
“We estimate today that property taxes could total $70,000 to $80,000 per year,” the organization wrote in a statement sent to La Presse.
[Cette dépense] would make up between 6-8% of our budget and 35-40% of total annual membership dues [en 2022].
The Union of Quebec Writers
However, no review of the exemption is planned for the next four years, the Commission Municipale du Québec (CMQ) confirmed to La Presse. “Unless there are significant changes in ownership or user activities, the Commission need not revise its 2018 decision before a period of 9 years,” or May 24, 2027, writes spokeswoman Isabelle Rivoal in an email.
In 2018, the CMQ considered that the Maison des Writers met the criteria of the Local Taxation Act by “organizing informational or educational activities for people who wish to improve their knowledge of literature in their free time.
New activities
Why is UNEQ so quick to throw in the towel after giving it new collective bargaining rights under the Artist Status Act passed last June?
“The division between offices for union activities, which are set to increase in area, and spaces reserved for receiving the public comes into play, writes UNEQ. The municipality may reassess the exemption at any time if it learns or believes that the property no longer meets these requirements. »
However, the City of Montreal has no intention of requesting a review by the Commission Municipale du Québec before the deadline, Mayor Valérie Plante’s administration told La Presse.
In 2018, the City of Montreal did not oppose the UNEQ exemption process. And there is nothing to suggest that this will be the case in 2027, when the House of Writers will retain its cultural vocation. However, the CMQ has the last word.
“There is a big difference between what the local government says and what the tax service does,” argues UNEQ representative Daniel Payette, a lawyer who has pleaded before the commission many times.
Defense or Promotion?
UNEQ’s mission is at the heart of a split between its former leaders, who seek to revitalize the Maison des écrivains, and its current administrators, who focus on the trade union component.
In September 2022, the UNEQ Board of Directors approved the sale of its “headquarters”. According to a preliminary agreement, she was to join the Union des Artistes on Avenue De Gaspé, in a building that also houses the Guild of Musicians of Quebec.
“UNEQ has always had two mandates: the literary mandate and the mandate to defend the socio-economic rights of its members,” stresses Danièle Simpson, president of the association from 2010 to 2016.
What she got was bargaining power with publishers, and that’s great. But the government has not directed UNEQ to become a union focused solely on the needs of writers.
Danièle Simpson, president of the association from 2010 to 2016
According to lawyer Daniel Payette, a member of UNEQ, it is now unthinkable that the promotion of literature should remain the “principal use” of the Maison des écrivains, a condition imposed by the Local Taxation Act.
“We’re still close to 50-50,” he said. You only need to add an office and an employee and you can lose the exemption. This creates an extremely precarious situation. For example, the union needs to hire complaints officers, legal advisers and administrative staff, explains Me Payette.
However, Pierre Lavoie, director general of UNEQ from 1993 to 2010, is convinced that the association can maintain its union activities in the Maison des écrivains – or telework – without sacrificing its cultural calendar. “The Émile Nelligan Room and the Bruno Roy Library are large spaces that have always facilitated literary activity,” he notes.
UNEQ’s union change is a “radical, philosophical and cultural change” that requires the approval of members, plead 53 signatories – former administrators and writers such as Michel Tremblay, Gilles Vigneault and Joséphine Bacon – in a letter to Culture Minister Mathieu Lacombe.
“What happens to the grants that UNEQ receives from the three arts councils? [500 000 $ en 2022] and your ministry when it emphasizes its union activities? They ask.
reassure members
Mayor Valérie Plante’s cabinet says it is “sensitive to community concerns” and hopes in vague terms that the UNEQ board will reconsider its position.
“The Maison des écrivains building and mission are at the heart of the identity of our cultural metropolis and we hope that the Board of Directors can quickly reassure its members about the future of their headquarters,” writes Catherine Cadotte, chief press officer for the Office of the Mayor and the Executive Committee from Montréal.
In an email sent to La Presse, the Culture Ministry says it remains “vigilant” and indicates it will work with the City of Montreal “if specific actions need to be taken.”
Many UNEQ members have written to the Executive Board asking that the issue of the sale of the Maison des Writers be placed on the agenda of the next Extraordinary Assembly, where the disputed union dues will be the subject of a new vote.
The UNEQ Board will meet on Tuesday 17th January afternoon to consider the “requests” from its members.
From $335,000 to 2.4 million?
The Writers’ House was purchased in 1990 for $335,000 and opened two years later. Montreal, Quebec and Ottawa shared a cost of $600,000 to modernize the building, which is more than $1 million today. The City of Montreal estimates the historic building’s unmortgaged value at $2.4 million. “Our initial evaluations lead us to believe that the value of the home on the market will be between $1,300,000 and $1,600,000,” UNEQ said in an email.