BELLA VISTA -- The City Council met for a work session Tuesday to discuss a tax on lodging and prepared food to pay for an advertising and promotion commission.
The proposal would be a 2 percent tax on lodging shorter than 30 days, as well as a 1 percent sales tax on prepared food in the city.
Mayor Peter Christie said the taxes would pay for an advertising and promotion commission.
City attorney Jason Kelley said the commission would operate independently from the city.
"It sort of spins off and becomes its own living, breathing thing," he said.
Bella Vista's economic development manager, Travis Stephens, said it's important to have a commission such as this to promote businesses the city has. While the city has caught some guests' eye with its mountain bike trail system and other amenities, he said, those people often end up spending their money to eat and sleep in other nearby cities, such as Bentonville and Rogers.
The commission, he said, will be able to promote Bella Vista businesses in ways the city can't, such as advertising to promote events. He said businesses have largely been supportive of the proposal.
Alderman Frank Anderson said he thinks it's worth establishing.
"Is it a guaranteed thing it will work just the way you want it every time? No. But it is a benefit to the city overall. And it's certainly better than what we have now, which is nothing," Anderson said.
Kelley said the council needs to consider whether the commission should tax alcoholic beverages because a tax on alcohol served cannot be collected for the commission if the city also wishes to collect supplemental beverage tax.
The beverage tax, he said, isn't being collected but would go straight into the city's coffers if instated. The other side, he said, is allowing the tax could help the commission grow quickly.
The council agreed to exempt alcohol from the proposal for now in order to leave the city's options open.
NW News on 02/24/2017