Buildings bought for affordable housing development on Yellowknife's auction list over unpaid taxes

Four downtown buildings bought up by a Yellowknife company in 2021 continue to be on the city's auction list year after year because of unpaid taxes. 

The president of Range Lake Developments, Biswanath Chakrabarty, said at the time of purchase that the decision was driven by seeing so many unaffordable rental units in the city controlled by owners in the South. 

Chakrabarty said the company planned to build 60 new units and rent them 20 per cent below the market price. As of May 2022 however, after owning the buildings for about a year, the company had $60,000 in tax arrears.

The city can sell property at a public auction when taxes haven't been paid on it for two years in a row. City council will consider a list of properties that it could sell at its meeting Monday evening. 

Four of the properties Range Lake Developments bought in 2021 –  5004, 5016 (A), and 5018 on 50 Avenue and 5013 51 St. – are on the list, with 2023 tax arrears totalling over $100,000. That number makes up just over half of the town's total tax arrears for 2023, including both residential and commercial properties.

Arrears have to be paid or property owners need to go on a payment plan before the tax auction date to prevent buildings from being auctioned and sold. Most of the time owners work out a payment plan to get off the list.

The majority of Range Lake Developments properties on the list, however, have been increasing in tax arrears since 2021.

CBC News called Range Lake Developments but they said neither the president or property manager was available for an interview by time of publishing.

Building is 'challenging' says tenant

Mamush Feyisa leases space in one of the buildings for his business, the B7 convenience store. He said about four months ago, Range Lake Developments asked if he wanted to buy the building for $550,000.

The building is on the City of Yellowknife's auction list with a minimum auction price of $262,055 and was assessed to be worth $524,110 in 2025.

"That's not worth it. It's very challenging, the building," said Feyisa.

Feyisa said leasing from the company has been complicated at times but is good for the most part. 

He added that getting the building serviced can be difficult – it was something he was having trouble with last week. Feyisa said the building's pipes had frozen. He said Chakrabarty told him to contact the company office for a mechanic, but Feyisa said he's been getting excuses so far. 

"I'll send it later. I'll send it today…. Still now, since Monday to date, no water," said Feyisa. 

Feyisa said the building had water issues eight months ago as well but the leasing company gave a 50 per cent discount on the monthly rent for the time it wasn't working. Feyisa added there have been heat issues in the past too that he had to get a friend to fix.

Still, Feyisa said he'd like to stay in the building to serve the community especially after putting a great deal of his own time and money into it. 

Stewart Weir MacDonald Limited leases space in the 50/50 Mini Mall, also owned by Range Lake Developments. Stewart Weir MacDonald president, Lauchlin MacDonald said their leasing agreement with the owners is confidential.

"We have not been privy to [a] discussion on a sale or transfer of the property," MacDonald said in an email.

Commercial tax arrears hurt city budget, says councillor

Developer and city councillor Rob Warburton said it's not common for a property to end up at the auction process and to his memory no commercial property has gone to auction.

However he said that commercial properties being on that list is a problem, because commercial taxes are significantly higher than residential properties and make up a large portion of the city's tax base.

"A commercial building not paying taxes has the same impact as a couple of houses not paying taxes…. So it's disproportionately impactful to our budget if you have commercial properties not paying what they should," said Warburton.

"It's a business. So I'm less understanding of that being a constant problem."

In the case that a commercial property did make it to auction, Warburton doubts it would sell due to territorial legislation on property assessments and taxation.

He said that properties have a minimum auction price of half its assessed value under the legislation. While that price is usually less than the market value for a house, the assessed values for commercial properties tend to be way higher than the market value. 

"If it's being sold for more than it's worth, no one's going to bid on that auction," said Warburton.