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City seeks state OK to boost bed tax
By Kenneth C. Crowe II, Staff
Writer The city expects to raise $5.3 million by 2007 to underwrite expansion of the Saratoga Springs City Center by increasing its hotel occupancy tax to 6 percent from 4 percent. The City Council voted unanimously Tuesday night to ask the state Legislature to approve the increase, which would be collected at hotels, motels and bed and breakfasts with four or more rooms. The City Center Financing Task Force recommended increasing the bed tax following its appointment by Finance Commissioner Michael Lenz. The task force's goal, Lenz said, was to "secure funds to pay for expansion of the city center." "This is a step that is a large one," said Mayor Ken Klotz. The move to seek state approval for the higher bed tax came after the mayor's City Center Task Force reported its recommendations for expanding the city's convention center. That task force supported the City Center Authority's projection of doubling the size of the convention facility to about 35,000-square-feet and building a 600- to 700-space parking garage on city property on Maple Avenue to relieve parking congestion downtown and handle additional traffic generated by the city center. City officials want to enlarge the 20-year-old center in order to attract more convention business and continue to lure visitors to the Broadway shopping district. The city center is credited with bringing in business outside of the summer tourism season, which hinges on the success of the annual Saratoga Race Course meet. City Attorney Jeffrey Wait is working on
the message to the state Legislature requesting the increase in the bed tax.
Wait also is reviewing what the city must do in order to create a parking
authority to handle the construction of the proposed parking garage. |
