The 2 percent restaurant tax utilized by the city and county to fund the Columbus Lowndes Convention and Visitors Bureau could be in danger.
Following Monday”s meeting of the Lowndes County Board of Supervisors, District 1 Supervisor and Board President Harry Sanders said the tax could be canceled if the city follows through on its plans to appoint three at-large members to the CVB Board of Directors.
“If they appoint three at-large they”re spitting in our face. We”re cruising down a real slippery slope,” said Sanders. “If they don”t watch it there won”t be no money.”
Sanders” comments came after the supervisors vacated the county”s appointments to the CVB board and voted 3-2 to table its three appointments until the city makes its appointments.
Both the city council and county supervisors have the power to cancel the tax via a majority vote. However, Sanders may not have the support he needs to follow through with the threat.
“I don”t agree with that. I think we would be wrong to let the 2 percent go by,” said District 2 Supervisor Frank Ferguson, who voted with Sanders and District 3 Supervisor John Holliman to delay the county”s appointments to the CVB board. “If we use it in the right way, it certainly provides a lot. I don”t think people understand tourism is a big part of Columbus.”
District 4 Supervisor Jeff Smith and District 5 Supervisor Leroy Brooks, who are both involved with annual festivals funded by the CVB, opposed the move to delay the appointments. Brooks declared he wouldn”t have voted to vacate the current board had he known Sanders would move to delay the future appointments.
Ferguson said he voted to delay the appointments in order to let the city act first.
“What was done today I don”t think was a brilliant move, but it was a move forward,” he said. “The city and county should be very aware of who they”re putting on the board and for what reasons. I think we could possibly lose some good (CVB board) members in the shuffle.”
Sanders explained delaying the county”s appointments to the CVB board would eliminate the possibility of redundancy. The county has voted to maintain two industry-specific appointments and name one at-large member, but he said the city may appoint an at-large member who is involved with a particular industry.
The city plans to name its appointments to the CVB board at its March 1 meeting. Current applicants are John Bean, Whirllie Byrd, Dewitt Hicks Jr. and Claude Simpson.
Current applicants for the county appointments include Bart Wise (recommended by the Columbus Lowndes Development Link), hoteliers Mark Castleberry and Cindy Putnam and at-large candidates Kathy Howell, Fred Kinder, Charles Miller, David Sanders and George Swales.
Brooks expressed concern the four remaining city-appointed CVB board members would now control the CVB with the county seats vacated. Sanders replied that, under the rules of the existing CVB ordinance, five board members must be present to form a quorum, and the city and county have yet to agree on a new ordinance, thereby preventing any new business.
Jason Browne was previously a reporter for The Dispatch.
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