Do you live in a condo? Do you like it? Really?

Some live in condos because they choose to do so while others live in condos out of necessity. In any case, I like condo living because if I want to go away, I just lock my door and take off. I don’t have to worry about being burglarized, not with so many neighbours close by, and in my condo complex, the residents do truly look out for one another.

For example, one day last summer, I carelessly left my bicycle unlocked outside my door. When I returned home, a neighbour came over and told me she saw two young teens walking out of the property with my bicycle. She confronted them and they dropped the bike and took off. I love having good neighbours like that and it’s one of the reasons I love condo living.

When we first moved into our condo, having for many years been house dwellers, I remember remarking to my wife that the best sound I heard was that of a lawn mower someone else was using. The only sound better than that was someone else scraping the snow off my sidewalk.

There’s no doubt about it, condo living has its advantages. But there’s always a but.

Condo living has some disadvantages, too. And at the top of the list is tax assessment.

Why is it that condo owners pay more taxes than house dwellers? In fact, it can be said that condo owners subsidize house owners, and here’s why. It costs far less to provide the utilities to an apartment-type building or townhouses with so many occupants than it does for a single dwelling. Yet, they are taxed the same. Is that really fair?

Is it fair that I pay municipal taxes for garbage collection, but I have to also pay to have my garbage contracted out because the city cannot get a truck onto my property without having it back up? Is it fair that I have to pay extra to have my hydrants flushed out every year while individual houses get theirs flushed out through their municipal taxes? Is it fair that I have to cough up the dough to repair my own roads, maintain my light standards or pay to have our little pond sprayed for the West Nile virus?

Well, as a house dweller, you might say that it is my choice to live in a condo, and you’re right. It is my choice, but it is certainly not the choice of all condo dwellers. I am a senior citizen, and like so many other older citizens, I choose to live in a condo.

I enjoy the conveniences that condo living offers. But what about the thousands of others who live in condos because it is the only kind of house they can afford? Is it fair that they should be subsidizing stand-a-lone house dwellers?

The Fair Tax Campaign of Guelph is an organization of concerned Guelph citizens who are trying to do something to rectify the inequities of municipal tax assessment. They are part of a growing provincial group that is trying to make its voice heard.

Aren’t we fortunate to be living in a democracy and are able to do this? The Fair Tax Campaign of Guelph is currently circulating a petition to Guelph city council requesting a recognition of the inequities of paying municipal taxes and condo fees for the same services.

If you would like to sign this petition or have more information about this group, or would like to attend a meeting, contact Fair Tax Campaign of Guelph through Ted Pritchard at tpritcha@rogers.com