Blacks and whites join in opposition to fees in Alabama city
Source: Associated Press
Jay Reeves, Associated Press Updated 4:53 pm, Thursday, February 23, 2017
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) Blacks who celebrate the civil rights movement and whites who commemorate the Civil War are suddenly finding themselves fighting on the same side in historic Selma, Alabama: against City Hall.
Both groups say the city is squeezing them with demands for thousands of dollars in up-front payments to stage annual events that bring tens of thousands of visitors to an otherwise sleepy community where unemployment is high and boarded-up homes and businesses are a common sight.
Plans for next month's Selma Bridge Crossing Jubilee, which commemorates the Selma-to-Montgomery voting rights march of 1965, are up in the air over the city's demand. And the re-enactment of the 1865 Battle of Selma, involving hundreds of history buffs in Civil War garb, has been canceled because organizers couldn't afford the tab.
The jubilee draws mostly blacks, the battle re-enactment mostly whites. So now, two groups with different interests and membership rosters are united in being upset with Mayor Darrio Melton and other leaders who say the city can't afford the police overtime, fire protection and cleanup the events require.
Read more: http://www.chron.com/news/us/article/Blacks-and-whites-join-in-opposition-to-fees-in-10954806.php
BumRushDaShow
(129,441 posts)"Civil Rights District" as a National Monument. The NPS is expected to contribute $300,000 towards that.
http://www.al.com/news/birmingham/index.ssf/2017/01/birmingham_civil_rights_nation.html
It is a small town and they really should consider finding some way to budget for tourism at this point.
yallerdawg
(16,104 posts)We want public services but what if we don't have money for public services?
Rep. Hank Sanders says, "We already paid to march across that bridge!" But that was over half a century ago.
Selma is a relatively impoverished community in the historic Black Belt. The revenue-generating mall and other stores have closed up. The city is in decline.
Something has to change.
Obviously, the City of Selma needs to be a partner in the creating revenue from the weeklong Bridge Crossing annual event, and the Battle of Selma reenactment.
Otherwise, there is no public service in the budget.
csziggy
(34,137 posts)The quote above is from the article linked in the OP.
If the city and county can't figure out a way to get the revenues needed to support the tourism these events bring to the area, they will LOSE that $80+ million that is brought in from outside.
Increase taxes on motel rooms is an obvious move. Right now Dallas county charges between 3 and 6% lodging tax + $1 per room. They also have an "Amusement fee" (I am not sure what that is) that is between 1.5 and 4.5%. (http://revenue.alabama.gov/SALESTAX/sales/index.cfm?Action=CountyDetail)
Florida has a much higher hotel (transient) rate:
Orange County 6.00% + 6.50% = 12.5%
Osceola County 6.00% + 7.00% = 13%
Seminole County 5.00% + 6.00% = 11%
Lake County 4.00% + 7.00% = 11%
Polk County 5.00% + 7.00% = 12%
http://aboutorlando.com/orlando-area-hotel-tax-rates/
That money pays for police, fire and emergency services as well as providing for advertising to increase tourism.
Many of the places I've visited have over 10% taxes on hotels - it's pretty normal and makes sense. Unless of course, you are a Republican and do not want to offer services in general and only want to provide services to those who can pay out of pocket.