Dear City Council Candidates:
Members of the Boulder Hotel & Motel Association look forward to meeting the many of you who have accepted our invitation to our lunch at the Millennium on September 22 at 11:30 A.M.
I am sending this information in the hopes that you will find the material useful and informative in understanding the value of the hospitality industry in the financial success of the city of Boulder.
Among a number of pressing issues facing our industries the following will form the basis of our discussions on September 22. As time will not permit individual responses at lunch to all of these questions, please send written responses via email that we can post on our website for the benefit of our members. For those of you unable to attend, we will also appreciate getting your views via email.
As an industry, tourism is both one of the largest single contributors to the city budget in terms of economic impact, including lodging, restaurants, and arts, part of retail, attractions and festivals. In 2001, Kate Love, the former City of Boulder Finance Director estimated the 2.3 million visitors contributed over $10.3 million to the General Fund, which was 14.3% of the net Sales Tax Revenue that year. More recently, the Boulder Economic Council Blue Ribbon Study confirmed its importance and estimated tourism accounts for more than 13% of sales taxes. Of our business and recreational visitors the greater portion are here to do business in the city in the organic foods industry, federal lab meetings, and university events.
In 2008, Boulder's hotels contributed over $3.5 million dollars to the city's un-dedicated sales tax collections. Boulder restaurants flowed an additional $508,654 to the same general fund. Visitor spending, often referred to as a "silent tax contributor", brings additional dollars to our community without incurring any expenses for infrastructure such as city services. Tourism tax dollars flowing to the undedicated funds category directly support libraries, police, fire departments, parks, arts, trash collection, open space, human services and many other residential amenities.
The Boulder Convention & Visitors Bureau was created in 1985 by an agreement initiated by the hotel and restaurant community to increase collected taxes. Out of the combined hotel and restaurant $4 million collected in 2008, the city granted the CVB, an annual budget of $764,001. Though drastically under-funded in comparison to other communities similar to Boulder, a recent Economic Impact Report by the CVB shows that for every dollar spent on its activities, $26.70 of value and $.90 in taxes are returned to Boulder for every dollar invested. (Annual CVB budgets include: Estes Park, CO - $2.3 million; Ann Arbor, MI – $1.1 million; Eugene, OR - $1.2 million; Provo, UT - $1.1 million).
The BHMA is undertaking a study, together with the Boulder CVB, to determine the feasibility of endorsing an increase in the accommodations tax to benefit the city of Boulder by enhancing the activities of the BCVB by funding off season cultural festivals and events, sport tournaments and competitions, or advertise to markets already familiar with Colorado and driving more business to town. More, more, more…Boulder has a very favorable and healthy image nationally and internationally however funds limit programs.
Many cities have successfully created a facilitator position at the city manager-level to streamline city-wide events – athletic competitions, multi-facility festivals, cultural, educational, and meetings – to coordinate among the various city offices to attract and facilitate those events. Boulder would greatly benefit from increased revenues with such an addition to city staff.
In addition to enhancing the quality of life for residents, an important component of tourism is athletic facilities in the city which can attract softball tournaments, and soccer matches among others. Neighboring communities have successfully invested in upgrading and adding to their facilities while Boulder's failure to maintain its fields at competitive levels has reduced our ability to attract those visitors. Several articles in the Daily Camera this year have outlined the deplorable conditions of our fields.
Federal labs (National Institute of Standards & Technology -NIST, National Geophysical Data Center – NGDC, and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration - NOAA), are an important financial component, estimated at more than $57 million annually by a Boulder Economic Council study, for many reasons including employment, investment, attracting meetings and visitors. The study did not take into account the impact of the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) because it does not receive funding directly from the US Government. The impact by NCAR may double the estimated revenues to Boulder.
Finally, the members of the Boulder Hotel & Motel Association are your good neighbors and constituents. More than 60% of employees live in the city of Boulder. An estimated $1 million is donated by our hotels through "in-kind" contributions, volunteer hours and complimentary rooms. All members participate in water conservation through a "green laundry program" in which linens are laundered only at checkout unless specifically requested during their stay by guests. Boulder Outlook Hotel & Suites and St Julien Hotel & Spa have initiated "zero-waste" programs and many others are adopting components of that program.
- How would you support the hospitality and restaurant industry to attract more visitors to the Boulder and to ensure that this important source of revenues continues?
- How would you propose to increase funding to the CVB in order to capitalize on this important investment and to drive additional revenues to the city?
- Would you be in favor of earmarking the additional revenue from an increased accommodations tax for such purposes?
- How would you improve the process of booking citywide events and groups into city facilities?
- How do you propose to enhance our existing facilities – recreational, athletic, social and meetings spaces - so that they are sufficient to both encourage visitors and to ensure the quality of life we want for our residents?
- How do you propose to help to retain the Federal Labs in Boulder?
