Surveyed residents say housing and homelessness should receive more funding than tourism marketing efforts, but the Durango Chamber of Commerce objects to diverting funds.
Jack Llewellyn, executive director of the Durango Chamber of Commerce, said a recent survey gauging public sentiment of lodgers tax allocations, which ranked housing needs first and tourism marketing last, was too small in scope.
Durango City Council reviewed the results of the survey at a Jan. 17 study session. Afterword, the council refrained from pursuing a ballot measure that would redirect lodgers tax from tourism marking to housing needs.
Of current lodgers tax revenues, 55% goes toward tourism marketing, while 20% goes to transportation, 14% goes to arts and cultural events, and 11% is reserved for spending at City Council’s discretion.
Llewellyn said the survey reviewed by Durango City Council, which asked residents what issues should be prioritized for funding by lodgers tax allocations, was biased for engaging with only city residents and not business owners who live in La Plata County and could be affected by decisions.
Hoteliers, vacation rental owners and other business owners who remit sales tax but live outside Durango city limits weren’t surveyed, he said.
The survey results from city-contracted New Bridge Strategy show voting residents “extremely” and “very” much favor a focus on affordable and workforce housing initiatives more than transportation, roads and bridges, child care, parking, and tourism marketing, which ranks dead last with 18% of respondents saying the subject is “extremely” and “very important.”
However, tourism marketing has an overall total support of 56% in the same survey when considering “somewhat favorable” and similar responses. But no matter how one slices it, tourism is still in the bottom tier of surveyed residents’ priorities.
Survey responses included comments that said, “Durango sells itself,” “We don’t really have to market it,” and “We almost want fewer people to come here.”
Llewellyn said he’s interested in learning more about tourism marketing naysayers.
“How long have they been in Durango? Do they sign the front of the check or the back of the check? Where are they in their career (or) life-cycle, so to speak? Are they retirees? Are they second homeowners? Are they part of the workforce?”
He said many local businesses rely on tourists, and there are other outlets that rely on those businesses. And perceptions that downtown businesses all around are making bank is simply not the case.
“They have to pay rent and employees and cost of goods. And that’s where (tourism) really helps to separate and allow you to do more things or hire extra people,” he said.
He said to tourism naysayers, “If you’re going to turn the faucet off with tourism, what are you going to replace it with? ’Cause our economy would suffer.”
He said the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad and Fort Lewis College bring in over $100 million to the Durango community yearly, and that’s what separates Durango from other mountain towns.
In some instances, negative reactions to the suggestion of more tourism funding are shortsighted, he said. Durango is busy in July and August, but the city benefits from its tourism economy year-round.
cburney@durangoherald.com
