Title
2019 Lodging Tax Funded Tourism Services
Recommended Action
Committee Recommendation:
Not referred to a committee.
City Manager Recommendation:
Review the proposals and develop recommendations to forward to City Council.
Report
Issue:
Whether to develop recommendations for 2019 tourism funding
Staff Contact:
Kellie Purce Braseth, Strategic Communications Director, 360.753.8361
Presenter(s):
Each organization that submitted a proposal has been notified of the meeting date and encouraged to have a representative present in case the Committee has questions.
Background and Analysis:
Annually, the Olympia Lodging Tax Advisory Committee (LTAC) makes recommendations on use of approximately one-half of the City’s Lodging Tax Fund. Per a long-standing agreement that pre-dates the Committee’s creation, the City uses the other half for capital and operating costs of the Washington Center for the Performing Arts, a City-owned facility.
An open call for tourism services funded by the Olympia Lodging Tax was advertised beginning Aug. 6, 2018. The application deadline was Sept. 21, 2018. Fourteen (14) proposals were received by deadline and the Committee will consider a standing request of $100,000 from the Visitors and Convention Bureau, all totaling $388,661 in requests. No proposals were received after the deadline. The City’s Accounting Services Manager projects the maximum available funds for 2019 to be approximately $383,000, after the regular 20 percent set aside for reserves.
LTAC Chair Jessica Bateman will present the Committee’s recommendations to the City Council on Tuesday, Oct. 23, 2018, during the Council’s regular business meeting, which starts at 7 p.m. at Olympia City Hall.
The Council’s Public Hearing on the City’s 2019 budget, including Lodging Tax recommendations, will be Tuesday, Nov. 13, 2018, during the City Council’s regular business meeting, which starts at 7 p.m. at Olympia City Hall. The meeting is televised live on TCMedia - Olympia Cable Channel 3 and video streamed through the City’s website: olympiawa.gov
Staff expects to have 2019 service contracts ready for review and signature by each organization about January 1, 2019.
Attachments:
Chart of Olympia Lodging Tax Award History
2019 Applications