Foshee backing down on hotel tax demands
Well, as many of you know, the city is wanting to pas an increase in hotel-motel tax to pay for improvements to livestock facilities at State Fair Park. The only person that has had issues with this is councilman, Jerry Foshee. He has repeatedly said that he thinks some of the money should go to city parks.
While I agree that we need to put more money in our city parks, I think right now it is very crucual that we revamp State Fair Park....and at this point, even with the money from the hotel-motel tax we will just have the money to revamp the livestock facilities and not other facilities or thhe grounds. So pulling money out of this to pay for city parks would only set us further back at the State Fair Grounds.
Anyways, looks like Foshee is backing down on his demands, and will favor an increase in the tax to pay for livestock improvements and construction of a few new barns and a livestock arena at the Fairgrounds.
I personally think that midway through MAPS for Kids, we need to consider putting together MAPS III, which would pay for the rest of the needed improvements at State Fair Park, could improve city parks, and include many other projects.
If we wait for MAPS for Kids to expire, before proposing MAPS III, we may have a harder time getting MAPS III passed. Why? Because after MAPS for Kids is finished, sales taxes will go back down to original levels, and proposing a MAPS III would be viewed as an increase in taxes, something most conservative Oklahomans don't favor. If we propose MAPS III while the MAPS for Kids penny sales tax is still in place, we can say that this proposal willnot raise your taxes, but keep them at the current rate. You wouldn't believe how much this would help MAPS III get passed.........if you don't make it look like a tax increase, people are more willing to vote for it.
----------------
"Councilman supports raising tax for fair park
By Steve Lackmeyer
The Oklahoman
Oklahoma City Councilman Jerry Foshee won't continue to insist a proposed increase in the hotel room tax include funding for city parks.
In the past few months, Foshee stood as the lone dissenting voice at City Hall as State Fair Park advocates prepared to ask the city council to schedule an election that would raise the tax from 2 percent to 5.5 percent.
With a proposal for a Dec. 14 election introduced at Tuesday's council meeting, Foshee said he didn't want to hurt efforts to improve the fair park's barns and arenas.
"I want the increase that is being proposed today," Foshee said. "I've been a supporter of the horse shows since they came here. These visitors spend money that causes our economy to grow."
In exchange for dropping his demand, Foshee said Mayor Mick Cornett, absent Tuesday, had agreed to form a task force to identify other ways to reopen or rebuild pools closed due to budget cuts.
The council unanimously agreed to set a Sept. 14 final hearing on scheduling a city election, with every council member indicating they will support the tax hike. Endorsements were issued by the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce, the Convention and Visitors Bureau and the Greater Oklahoma City Metro Hotel Association.
Jeff Penner, the association's executive director, said it wasn't an easy decision for hoteliers to support increasing a tax on their own industry.
"Why would we want to do that?" Penner asked. "We have to. As an industry, we have to stay proactive. We have to step up to the plate and make sure we remain the horse show capital of the world."
Penner said horse show participants like Oklahoma City for its history and location.
"But they're also telling us we're falling behind," Penner said. "Our facilities are aging, and other cities are aggressively marketing to them to take away our business."
Of the 3.5 percent increase, 3 percent would pay for fair park improvements and the remaining 0.5 percent would go to the Convention and Visitors Bureau to support events at the fair park and elsewhere, fair board Chairman Clayton I. Bennett said.
The tax, if passed by voters, is expected to support $50 million in bonds to pay for the improvements -- which isn't enough to pay for a park-wide overhaul, Bennett said.
"It's not all we need, but it's a terrific start," Bennett said. "We hope to complement it with private investment."
Oklahoma State Fair General Manager Tim O'Toole said horse shows have a $111 million annual impact on the local economy. "
Bookmarks