Cape Girardeau City Council Moves Forward with Business-Funded Tourism Committee
CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. (Heartland News) - The Cape Girardeau City Council voted 5-2 Monday night to advance a proposal from local business owners to cover the cost of research on tourism in the city.
The plan entails hiring an external consultant to explore the city's tourism potential. Business owners have offered to pay the $100,000 study fee and will work with a special task force appointed by the city council to decide which tourism initiatives to present to voters.
"I am pleased with the direction of collaborating with the task force and a consultant, involving a broader group of stakeholders, to ensure that any ideas taken to the voters have the best chance of enhancing our tourism while being data-driven," said Mayor Robbie Guard in a statement.
Councilwoman Tameka Randle expressed concerns regarding the city's partnership with private businesses during the meeting. She questioned the conditions attached to the proposal, stating:
"I appreciate the business of whoever wants to pay $100,000. You said no strings attached, but you already attached the strings when you gave it a name, and you said you can talk to such and such; you need to have these people on your committee. I don’t think that’s fair either."
Jeff Maurer of Mayson Capital presented the proposal on behalf of local hotel owners. He indicated their willingness to make adjustments to address the concerns raised. The group is requesting three seats on the task force.
Maurer emphasized the importance of gathering more data through the proposal. The council approved the plan to collaborate with hospitality leaders to explore tourism assets beyond sports, which may involve a tax increase.
They also rejected a Parks and Recreation Department proposal to expand the SportsPlex and construct outdoor soccer fields.
Issac Veneble, owner of Relish in downtown Cape Girardeau, less than two years old, expressed his opposition to a new restaurant tax on top of the 1% his customers already pay. He argued that it would make it harder for new restaurants to break even.
"We are playing this game of trying to get a business off the ground, be able to pay for labor, bring in supplies, pay our rent, our lease, so that we can continue our business and grow as we want to. The hustle and grind is to get to 0% to be a success in the first three years. Then that 1% equals negative 1%," he said.
Veneble noted that customers are more aware of the final price on their checks rather than the breakdown of where the tax goes.
Ron Brzyzki, owner of Sedona in Cape Girardeau, emphasized the impact of sports tourism on his business, which brings in customers from various states during tournaments.
"Without that SportsPlex and that business, there would be no Sedona. When the volleyball or basketball tournaments are out there, it impacts our business, sometimes 10%. So it’s a huge impact. If you are going to build soccer fields, that’s going to help us," he said.
City leaders plan to further examine the potential restaurant tax and the composition of the committee that will decide on the most beneficial tourism projects for Cape.
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