LITTLE ROCK — Little Rock hotel and restaurant owners say the city's tourism agency needs a hotel representative now more than ever because of the economy, and see a desire by city officials to appoint someone from the general public as a power grab by City Hall.
The seven-member Little Rock Advertising and Promotion Commission, which collects more than $9 million in taxes a year levied on prepared foods and hotel rooms, hasn't had a hotel representative since May 2008.
The only remaining commissioner on the independent panel with ties to the hotel industry, Jim Shamburger, left this past May when his term expired. Shamburger had represented the food industry and owns hotels outside Little Rock.
Commissioners are divided over whether the seat he vacated should be filled by someone from the hotel industry or from the general public.
State law calls for some combination of three commissioners who represent either restaurants or hotels as well as someone from the general public. Because the panel's at-large seat is filled by a restaurant chef, Little Rock's city attorney and commission attorney differ on whom the commission can appoint.
Commissioners have gone into executive session twice to discuss the nine people who have applied for the seat but haven't come to a consensus on a nominee.
Commissioner Gene Fortson has suggested shifting Tim Morton, the at-large member, to the industry position and filling his seat with someone outside the hotel or restaurant industry.
John Baker, the commission's attorney, said Wednesday that he believes such a move would run afoul of state law. Morton would have to resign and be appointed to the industry seat to be legal, Baker said.
Restaurant and hotel owners questioned such a move at a commission meeting Wednesday.
"You owe it to our industry, to the hotel industry and to our customers to honor the intent of this law," said Mark Abernathy, a restaurant owner and government affairs chairman for Consolidated Arkansas Restaurant Industries, who is calling for a hotel owner or manager to be appointed.
Abernathy said the confusion and desire by city officials to appoint someone from the general public appears to him and others to be "nothing short of a power grab" by Little Rock, which has seen its sales-tax revenue decline and has turned to the commission for park and cultural-event funding in recent years.
"They want to get control of this money and that's shameful," Abernathy said.
Blair Allan, a former commissioner who owns two hotels in Little Rock, agreed with Abernathy.
"I don't see us represented here and if we're not being represented, I don't see how our needs are being addressed. We need somebody who understands the hotel industry," he said.
Tax revenue from Little Rock's hotels has dropped nearly 10 percent over the past year, with restaurants making up the difference.
Mayor Mark Stodola said later Wednesday that Abernathy is "out of touch" and "there's no power grab."
Stodola said he has a broader philosophy on how the tax dollars can be spent to promote Little Rock than the "old guard," who he says think all the money should be spent on supporting the Statehouse Convention Center and area hotel and restaurants.
"We didn't take any money out of their pockets" by requesting $600,000 for River Market and park spending, he said, adding that the commission is independent and could have turned down his requests.
Revenue from the 2 percent tax has grown by more than 6 percent each year in recent years, bringing in $10.4 million last year to promote the city. A majority of the money, however, is wrapped up in paying for operating the city's convention center and parking lots.
Stodola said that while he is familiar with some of the candidates, he didn't have a preference. But he supports the city attorney's opinion, which said that the vacancy could be filled by someone from the general public.
Commissioners have met in executive session twice to discuss the vacant seat, most recently Wednesday, but haven't voted, said Chairman Philip Tappan.
Tappan, who is chairman of Purple Cow Restaurants, said he's heard from more than 10 hotel industry representatives who want an industry appointee and have the same concerns about a run on the commission's money. The only person he's heard from in favor of an at-large member has been the mayor, he said.
Fortson, who is also a city director, favors a non industry representative and requested the attorney opinions.
"I still feel that the public's interest is best served to have somebody on there other than a city director who is not an industry [representative]," Fortson said.
Commissioners postponed a decision Wednesday. Tappan said they wanted to have all remaining commissioners present. City Director Ken Richardson, who also sits on the commission, was absent.
Those who applied are Amanda Bryant, owner of JB's Guide Service, a Little Rock fishing-guide service; Larry Carpenter, owner of the Holiday Inn Presidential downtown; Ashan Hampton, a former college instructor who has worked in technical writing and public relations; Ron Hope, an attorney with the Little Rock firm Hope, Trice & O'Dwyer; Greg Joslin, a commercial real estate agent with Irwin Partners; Jim Keet, a former state legislator and restaurant owner who most recently opened Taziki's Greek Fare restaurant; Joyce Richardson, an employee of Arkansas Blue Cross and Blue Shield; Joe Walton Sr., a Little Rock resident who helped establish funding plans for the Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival and acted as the chief development officer for the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra Foundation; and Jarrod Woodley, a financial analyst for Ryerson Inc. and Alltel Communications/Windstream.
Arkansas, Pages 9, 14 on 08/27/2009