Edmond voters will decide on a lodging tax increase: Here's what to know about the proposal

EDMOND — City leaders want to up their game to keep existing and attract new athletic events to town, and they are urging residents to join their team.

This week, the city council authorized a special election June 18 that asks voters to approve a 2% increase in Edmond's lodging tax, adjusting it from 4 to 6%.

The increase would bring in an additional $350,000 to Visit Edmond, the city's tourism and convention office.

Visit Edmond would use those funds to further boost Edmond's profile among organizations that potentially could or already do bring their events to town, officials said.

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This tax is charged only on bills for overnight stays purchased by guests at Edmond's 13 hotels, one bed & breakfast and more than 150 vacation homes.

For a stay costing $100, the tax would increase from $4 to $6 if voters approved the change.

What would the extra money be used for?

Events Visit Edmond would pursue using the additional funds include the NCAA Division II Men’s Golf Championships that will be held in May 2027 and the NCAA Division II Men’s and Women’s Tennis championships happening at the same time.

Edmond's renovated KickingBird Golf facility at Bryant Avenue and Danforth Road will be prominently promoted to land the first event.

The course, which reopened in mid-2023 after an overhaul that took nearly two years, includes a 13,384 square-foot clubhouse, a 6,670-square-foot special events center, an indoor teaching area, an expanded driving range that includes a pavilion, a short-game practice area and laser-leveled tee boxes and rebuilt greens on all 18 of its holes, four of which were completely redesigned.

The Edmond Center Court tennis complex at 601 W 15th is key to landing the second. The $18.5 million project, funded jointly by the city and Edmond Public Schools and opened in October 2020, has 24 outdoor tennis courts (with two stadium courts), six indoor tennis courts and a 31,000-square-foot clubhouse that includes a pro shop and event support space.

But Visit Edmond would not just be going for new events.

It also would use the extra cash to keep local, regional and national organizations that already use sporting complexes and event centers across the community interested in returning for future events.

Sports-related facilities Edmond boasts include its youth baseball/softball fields at the A.C. Caplinger sports complex at 240 S Bryant, its Edmond 66 adult softball fields at State Highway 66 and Post Road, its 16 soccer fields at the Service Blake Soccer Complex and Edmond Soccer Club at 1502 W Danforth, its outdoor Carl Benne rodeo arena at 300 N Kelly, the competition-quality Edmond Schools aquatics center at the YMCA in Mitch Park, and various University of Central Oklahoma facilities, including its football field, which have hosted numerous state championships for the Oklahoma Secondary Schools Activities Association.

Visit Edmond also busily recruits various organizations to hold their conferences at shops, restaurants, hotels and conference centers within Edmond that can handle audiences ranging in size from 50 to 1,000 people.

Jennifer Thornton, tourism director for Visit Edmond, told members of the city council the proposed increase is supported by the community's hotel operators, its Airbnb property owners, its Chamber of Commerce and contracted operators of its various sporting venues.

The last time voters were asked to authorize an increase in Edmond's lodging tax was 1994, when it was adjusted to 4%.

Edmond lags behind other communities in capturing revenues used to promote tourism through that tax — Guthrie and Stillwater have 7% lodging taxes, while Norman's is at 8%, council members were told.

More tourism equals more tax dollars Edmond can spend

Growing the city's convention and tourism business is key to helping maintaining a healthy city budget, officials said.

Before the start of the fiscal year July 1, Edmond adopted a $99.3 million budget. About $69.7 million of that came from sales and use taxes.

Increasing the annual number of visitors to Edmond would increase activities at its retail businesses, in turn generating additional sales and use taxes that would benefit Edmond's bottom line.

"We are a sales and use tax, 100% at the city level right now," said Councilwoman Christin Mugg, remarking how she and other council members had just learned Edmond's sales tax growth for the current fiscal year will essentially be flat, rather than growing by a 2% rate officials previously had predicted.

Because of the revision, Edmond's city staff already has been advised to limit its expenditures between now and June 30, City Manager Scot Rigby reported to council members earlier in the same meeting.

"Anything that we can do to increase that sales tax base, which allows us to ... fix roads and parks and trails ... this is not just spending money to getting someone to come to our town for nothing, it is an investment that will pay for itself, many times over," Mugg said.

Before voting to support calling the election, Edmond Councilwoman Stacie Peterson said she was impressed by the level of support Edmond's community showed for calling the election.

"It is not just, 'This is what I want for me.' It is, 'What can we do for our community,'" Peterson said. "It is 30 years in the making. It's time."

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Edmond calls election on June 18 asking voters to increase lodging tax