Electric City sets plans for tourism funds

Electric City plans to distribute $40,000 of its hotel/motel tax funds to a handful of organizations in 2018, the council voted last Tuesday night.

Upon recommendation of the city’s lodging tax committee, the council voted to fund its lodging tax applications with reserve lodging tax monies totaling $42,920, which includes $1,600 for advertising and $41,320 for the design and planning of two planned parks on McNett Avenue and Grand Avenue.

The taxes are collected on motel and campground stays in the city.

The committee further recommended that an additional $35,000 be budgeted from the fund in 2018 to complete the design of the parks and proceed through the grant process.

Receiving $18,000 will be the Grand Coulee Dam Area Chamber of Commerce, including $13,000 for advertising, marketing and operation of the Colorama Festival, and $5,000 for advertising of general tourism.

The chamber was due to receive $16,500 this year and to date has received $13,707.

Grant County Port District 7 will receive $7,000 for the maintenance of grounds at the Banks Lake Golf Course.

The Coulee Area Park and Recreation District will receive $5,000 for maintenance of North Dam Park.

The Ridge Riders, who didn’t receive funds in 2017, will get $7,000 for advertising and operation of its rodeo during Colorama, and $3,000 for its Cleatis Lacy bull riding event, for a total of $10,000.

Electric City officials explained that money from the hotel/motel tax has been slow coming in this year. The city regularly receives between $65,000 and $70,000 each year; so far this year the city has only received $37,000.

Applications for hotel/motel monies totaled $100,000, city officials stated.

The city council also passed a resolution declaring that the city will hold $250,000 in its reserve fund. The council had earlier voted to hold $400,000 in reserve, but the fund never got that high.

At that time, the fund was for a pedestrian trail network that was part of the city’s modernization plan. The reservation of funds language was changed to “for design and development of projects as described in the Parks and Recreation plan of Electric City.”