Dave Kalinchuk, Economic Development Officer with Rocky View County shared insights into Balzac area development during the May 2017 Balzac Business Community Association meeting. Dave reviewed the anticipated effects Calgary’s changing business tax plan will have to businesses operating outside of Calgary’s downtown core. The economic downturn resulted in an exodus of businesses operating out of Calgary’s downtown center and a $4 billion drop in the downtown core’s assessment. As a result, the City of Calgary shifted its tax base out of the downtown core to surrounding region and significantly increased business taxes for Calgary businesses. This year, the City of Calgary used a rainy day fund as a temporary relief to those businesses faces increases of two or three times the previous year’s business tax. But now the rainy day fund has been used up, and those businesses will be required to pay their full assessment in 2018. It is expected that this will push businesses out of the City of Calgary into Rocky View County; where there is no business license system or business tax in place.