HOT funds are on the Odessa City Council’s agenda for Tuesday night.
Twenty-one agencies have asked for a portion of the city’s hotel occupancy tax funds this year and another six are seeking general funds.
This will be the first year the city council will be making decisions as to which agencies should get the funding with the help of a committee who reviewed each application to determine how many “heads in beds” they were responsible for.
Last March, the council voted to stop funding Downtown Odessa after City Manager John Beckmeyer said the city has been illegally funding the organization by using hotel occupancy taxes.
According to Beckmeyer, the city had been providing Downtown Odessa $450,000 a year for the last five years even though the rules state HOT funds can only be used for things that enhance tourism and the convention and hotel industry. While Downtown Odessa draws tens of thousands of people through events like Firecracker Fandango and the Parade of Lights, those don’t put heads in beds, he said.
On Thursday, Beckmeyer said Scott Joslove, president and CEO of the Texas Hotel and Lodging Association, came in and did a training with the agencies.
“They went all through it and came in with good justifications of how they’re putting heads in beds. We were able to go through and have a good feeling that we are in compliance with the rules around HOT fund distributions and I’m very excited about that,” Beckmeyer said.
The committee went through the applications and ranked them based on “true quantitative measures instead of just a subjective measure.”
“It really gives me a lot of confidence in our results,” he said. “It’s exciting to me because we’re doing it right.”
In the past, the decision-making has resulted in a marathon meeting, but he doesn’t expect that Tuesday night, Beckmeyer said.
During Tuesday’s meeting, Traffic Operations Supervisor Joseph Goff also plans to ask the council for just under $67,000 to purchase stencils that would be used to paint Odessa streets.
According to materials provided to the council, the stencils will ensure that road markings are clear and precise and are “crucial for maintaining orderly traffic flow and ensuring the safety of both drivers and pedestrians.”
The stencils would come from Geveko Markings, a Gainesville, Georgia company.
In addition, the council will:
• Consider giving the Girl Scouts of the Desert Southwest a 99-year lease on the building they’re already renting at 5217 N. Dixie Blvd..
• Discuss selling the former Fire Station No. 6 to Town and Country Drug for $270,000. The original agreement called for the company to pay $350,000, but issues with the building have since been discovered.
• Consider resurfacing the McKinney playground which isn’t ADA compliant for roughly $112,400.
During the council’s work session at 3 p.m., the council will:
• Discuss issuing requests for qualifications for the Derrington wastewater treatment plant.
• Discuss an $83,500 bid to remove asbestos and demolish the shredder building.
• Discuss accepting a 3.85 acre park that’s been developed by Leeco Properties and the Odessa Parks Foundation in the Desert Ridge subdivision.
• Continue discussing term limits and prohibiting former mayors from becoming council members.
