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Renton hikes hotel room tax to pay for projects
By Katherine Hedland RENTON -- A convention center, visitor's bureau or sports stadium could be built in town using money generated through an increased tax on hotel rooms. Those are some of the preliminary -- and ambitious -- ideas developed by an advisory committee that recommended the city impose an additional 1 percent tax on hotel and motel rooms. State law says the money must be dedicated to economic development. The Renton City Council approved the tax hike on Monday. While there are no plans for such facilities yet, having the money set aside for economic development could make them possible. "It allows the city to do some of the extra things," said Sue Carlson, the city's director of economic development. Carlson estimates the tax would generate about $180,000 the first year. But with two new hotels being built in Renton and three more proposed, that could jump to $400,000 within a few years, she said. Although there is an 11.4 percent hotel/motel tax in Renton now, the city must pass the money to King County to help pay off the Kingdome. But the 1997 Legislature allowed cities to assess a tax of up to 1 percent, as long as the total hotel/motel tax in a city doesn't exceed 15 percent. Renton is the first South County city to approve the tax. Hotels generally support the tax, even though it means charging
guests a bit extra, because of the amenities it could support. Bill Weise, general manager
of the Renton Holiday Inn Select, said the average room rate in Renton is between $70 and
$80, so the increase to a guest would be less than $1 a night. |
