RIGGINS URBAN RENEWAL AGENCY

 

On September 19, 2006, an Urban Renewal Agency (URA) was formed in Riggins.    The Mayor and Council recognizes that infrastructure improvements have not kept pace with the new nor proposed residential and business development, and the main objective of the URA is to make these improvements without placing any tax burden on our residents and businesses.  The URA will partner with any individual or corporation to make the City of Riggins safer and maintain a high quality of life.

 

The appointed commissioners are all volunteers who bring to the agency a wide variety of experience and expertise.  They include Chairman Robert Crump, Vice Chairman Larry Barnard, Glenna McClure, Tom Anderson, Robert Harper and Suzann Underwood.

 

The Urban Renewal Commissioners realize the City of Riggins will continue to grow and expand.  They plan to focus on a ten-year growth plan.  They have already set four areas of priority which are: 1. Sewer improvement and expansion.  2.  Greater amount of treated drinking water and storage.  3.  Improved emergency response system and vehicles.  4.  Parking space inside the city limits.

 

Monthly meetings will be held on the second Monday at 6:00 p.m. prior to City Council meeting in City Hall.  Additional information and meeting agendas and minutes on the URA can be found at the Riggins website.  www.rigginsidaho.org

 

 

 

LIBRARY BOOK SALE

 

The Library’s semi-annual book sale will start October 3rd! 

      There are lots of books offered for sale this year,

                         10Ë each or $1.00 a dozen.   

                                  Now…. that’s a sale!

 

 

IT’S SOCCER TIME!

Recreation Director Sharon Boggan reports that Lynette Brannstetter is the new coach for the K-2 Soccer Team.  You can see these young athletes in action on October 6th and October 13th, when they will scrimmage during the SRHS football games.

 

WHAT IS A RESORT TAX??

 

 

Riggins has been designated as a “Resort City”, which is defined as a community, with less than 10,000 population, that derives the major portion of their economy from recreation activities and travelers that are coming to the community as a destination.  With that designation, Riggins is authorized to impose a LOCAL-OPTION TAX, similar to the sales tax, for certain tourist related sales made in Riggins.    The City Council is proposing a 2% tax on hotel-motel and campground lodging, liquor-by-the-drink, and restaurant meal sales.  (In response to recent public input, the original proposal for 4% lodging tax was reduced to 2%).  Since the LOCAL-OPTION TAX must have 60% approval of the voters of the community, there will be a special election held November 7th on the issue.  If approved by the voters, this revenue would be earmarked for the City’s infrastructure projects, such as sewer and water, which are being heavily impacted by the increased use from visiting tourists.

 

                                       WHY A RESORT TAX??

 

The City’s sewer system is now thirty years old, in need of upgrade and repair, and is running at capacity on busy weekends.  Unfortunately, the system upgrade and repairs required are very costly and cannot be funded by the City without grant and loan assistance. An engineering study is in process at this time to determine the extent of the repairs needed, but “ball-park” figures recently received from JUB Engineers of Boise, Idaho, indicate that upgrade costs, alone without expansion of the treatment plant, could range as high as $1-2 million. 

 

Normally, when faced with major infrastructure repairs like this, cities propose revenue bonds  (which are loans primarily from USDA-Rural Development) that are repaid over a thirty-year period from monthly sewer user fees.  When Rural Development loans their money thru revenue bonds, they establish the minimum monthly sewer rate required to be collected.  After previous inquiries about the availability of USDA grant and loan funding for the sewer repairs, we have been advised that if the City were to receive funding assistance thru USDA-Rural Development, the minimum monthly residential sewer rate would have to be raised to $36.  This increase would nearly double the rates now being charged for city sewer, and would be an enormous hardship on all residents and would cripple our small businesses.  THE CITY COUNCIL IS TRYING TO AVOID THE NEED FOR REVENUE BONDS AND THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT’S HELP IN SETTING OUR SEWER RATES!  This proposed Resort Tax, the Local Option Tax, is a viable option!

 The Local Option Tax is a source of revenue that can be used for match for loans and grants to upgrade our city sewer and water facilities.  It is a tax that is primarily paid by tourists for lodging, drinks and meals in our community, and will have minimal impact on local residents.  In addition, Idaho Code requires that if sales are higher than expected, all tax revenue collected in excess of the amount budgeted must be used for property tax relief.  That means that if sales are higher than expected, the City’s property tax levy for the following year will be reduced by the amount of the excess tax revenue collected. 

 

The Riggins Local Option Tax, as proposed, is a 2% tax on all lodging sales, liquor-by-the-drink, and restaurant meals.  It is proposed for a ten-year period, and the revenue received is designated for the City’s infrastructure, capital projects and equipment, for administration costs associated with the tax collection, and for property tax relief.  Preliminary estimates of the tax revenue generated from these sales, according to the Idaho Tax Commission (based on 2005 sales) may total over $45,000 per year. The tax is added on to the price of the motel, drink, or meal, by the business (like sales tax), collected from the patron and remitted directly to the City.  It is primarily paid by tourists visiting Riggins and is one way to shift a portion of the financial burden of the city utilities from local residents to the visitors and tourists, who are impacting our city water and sewer systems.

 

The tax must be approved by a majority of 60% of the city’s voters.  A special election for the issue is scheduled for November 7, 2006, at the Heritage Center, with the polls open from 8:00am until 8:00pm.

 THIS IS AN IMPORTANT ISSUE FOR OUR CITY…PLEASE VOTE NOVEMBER 7TH!!