Good marketing makes the city money, and we should be investing more money in bringing people to town, the executive director of Durango Area Tourism Office said Tuesday.

Even though Durango saw a 12 percent increase in lodgers-tax revenue so far this year compared to last, Bob Kunkel told the Durango City Council he was concerned tourism growth cannot be maintained.

“Revenue is down, expenses are up, and we have fallen behind our competition,” Kunkel said.

The tourism office’s purpose is to market Durango as a destination. But right now Telluride, Sedona, Santa Fe and Grand Junction are all outspending Durango in marketing, and all have a higher lodgers-tax rate, Kunkel said.

The City Council has been dipping into the lodgers tax to fund other city services since 2009. The tourism office received $734,467, or 92 percent of the city’s lodgers tax revenue in 2008, but next year, it may only receive $644,000, or 68 percent. In addition, the tourism office has taken over funding the Durango Welcome Center, which has diverted money from marketing.

The tourism office’s services are valuable because for every $1 that is invested in marketing, $10.32 is returned to city in tourist spending, Kunkel said.

Kunkel suggested increasing lodgers tax from 2 percent to 3 percent on a nightly room rate because the rate has not been changed in 30 years.

Strong support, he said, would come from local lodgers if the revenue was dedicated to marketing.

The councilors supported this idea because it is a tax not on locals but on tourists, and they suggested bringing it before the voters in 2015.

“I don’t think its going to be a controversial issue,” Councilor Dick White said.

Kunkel also asked the council to stop diverting lodgers tax money to other services, including the trolley, which receives $135,000 from the tax.

“I have to lead this organization on better financial ground,” he said.

mshinn@durangoherald.com