Though other funding options exist for an expansion of the Bloomington/Monroe County Convention Center, the proposed 1 percent food and beverage tax may be the only one that can effectively pull in tourist dollars with minimal harm to Monroe County residents’ wallets.
At a public forum hosted by the Greater Bloomington Chamber of Commerce Tuesday, Talisha Coppock, executive director of Downtown Bloomington Inc. and the convention center, laid out some of the funding mechanisms that could be used for the convention center: the innkeeper’s tax, which is already being used for debt service for property and operational costs, a tax onautomobile
rentals, the food and beverage tax, and general obligation bonds and a pay-as-you-go plan, both of which are tied to property taxes and would place the burden of funding completely on residents.
rentals, the food and beverage tax, and general obligation bonds and a pay-as-you-go plan, both of which are tied to property taxes and would place the burden of funding completely on residents.
The county already has an innkeeper’s tax that is split between the convention center and Visit Bloomington, and there are not enough local car rentals to see much money from a rental tax, Coppock said. The food and beverage tax is the only other funding mechanism that would target tourists.
The Monroe County Council may implement the 1 percent tax on items purchased in restaurants and bars in the county, thanks to 2009 state legislation. The tax would not affect grocery store purchases.
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The law designates the money raised by the tax must go to a conference center, convention center or other tourism-related activity, and that money raised in the city of Bloomington belong to the city of Bloomington while all other money raised in the county would belong to Monroe County.
Money from the tax has tentatively been earmarked for a convention center expansion.
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