OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Lodging Tax Advisory Committee (LTAC) Meeting – August 27, 2025

City Council & Commissions — Wednesday, August 27, 2025
BodyPuyallup, Washington
SessionCity Council & Commissions
DateWednesday, August 27, 2025
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 2:24:45

Transcript — Verbatim
0:09

Good morning, everyone.

0:12

I appreciate everybody coming out today and all fresh shiny faces.

0:19

We are lacking one of our of our uh committee members who's planning on being here online.

0:26

So we're trying to get her online.

0:28

So we're we'll uh delay any formal business until she arrives.

0:35

Uh but in the meantime, let's go ahead and introduce ourselves for those that you don't know who you are.

0:41

Uh would you like to start at that end, Kent.

0:47

Okay.

0:48

Good morning.

0:48

Uh Dean Burke.

0:50

Uh work from the president CEO of the visit to Coma Pierce County, where the destination marketing organization countywide, including POLUP, one of our great cities, and uh my second uh term here on the PLUP LTEC committee.

1:04

So good morning.

1:06

Good morning.

1:07

I'm John Palmer, um president on the PL Downtown Main Street Association.

1:14

Good morning, Alison Shaper.

1:16

Um, President Zio at the Seminar PLU Chamber of Commerce, and this is my first LTAC committee.

1:20

And I started one month after this um process last year.

1:24

So this is new to me as well.

1:27

I'm Ned Whitting.

1:29

I'm a council member here in Puallop.

1:30

Uh I got tapped to chair this meeting yesterday of about 10 o'clock, I think.

1:36

So uh this is my first time at this activity too.

1:41

Um Renee McLean, CEO of the Washington State Fair, and it's my first time.

1:51

Uh good morning.

1:51

I'm Tierra Rivers.

1:53

Um I'm the general manager of the Holiday and Express here up on the Hill, here representing the Holiday and Express, the Fairfield, and the best Western Park Plaza.

2:01

Um I'm a first-timer as well.

2:04

And we are waiting for Tani Castro, who's the sales manager at Hampton Ian.

2:08

So hopefully we'll have her online shortly.

2:12

And Councilmember Whitting, it's my understanding that Miss Castro is actually on her way here now.

2:16

So she should be a few minutes late, but she will be here.

2:18

Okay, great.

2:20

So just a little uh background on what we're going to try to achieve today.

2:26

Um we uh have monies that are are derived from our uh local hotels from the lodging tax.

2:40

And our are we have more expectations for that funds than we have funds available.

2:48

So the purpose of this meeting is to whittle that down to uh so those two numbers meet.

2:56

And just in terms of of the this the structure of this body is determined by state code, state statute.

3:04

So and we're comprised of seven members, three of whom are contributors of uh the LTAC funds, hotels and the and the fair, and three that are recipients of the of the funds, and that's established by statute, and then uh I I represent the the city council.

3:29

So we have one city council representative on the on the committee.

3:34

And we had a situation this year where there might have been a perceived uh conflict of interest uh with the mayor.

3:44

Uh so we uh he requested that I step in and avoid any perception of a conflict of interest.

3:52

So uh that's why I'm here and I've had 24 hours of notice and and had to learn the rules and regulations and and uh go through my little package of stuff and sit in a council meeting last night, too.

4:11

So I I plead not as prepared as I might like to be, but uh I'm sure we will get through this.

4:20

Um so uh the uh I'm gonna delay public comment at this point.

4:30

So let's jump on to the review of city initiated proposals.

4:35

Eric, could you help us out with that?

4:39

Are you you were gonna provide that, right?

4:45

So this let me position this a little more to the 45% of our LTAC funds are are distributed by this are identified by this committee.

5:00

The other 55% is distributed by the city council directly without input from this committee.

5:05

So Eric's going to address the what the city council has decided to do with its share of the funds.

5:13

Yes, yes.

5:14

So hi, Eric Johnson, public affairs officer uh with the city.

5:18

And I'll just briefly talk about um the three requests uh that the city is making on the city initiated side.

5:25

So first off, um uh we're requesting 100,000 uh to continue the tourism branding campaign, as you can see, Pop always in season.

5:33

So that is for 100,000 to continue the advertising campaign with Rotator Creative uh to continue that on.

5:41

So um print digital ads, social media ads, working with influencers, uh bus billboards, uh billboards up on i5, those sorts of things.

5:50

Uh and then the second request is for I believe $35,000 to continue the uh replacement of our downtown street furnishings.

5:59

Um so as all of you may recall, last year city council approved new street furnishing standards.

6:05

So that includes benches, garbage cans, uh uh uh bike parking racks and uh planters, those sorts of things.

6:13

So uh we've actually just started doing that.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Tourism Promotion███████████████████████████27%
Arts And Culture██████████████14%
Budget Equity Analysis█████████████13%
Tourism Marketing██████6%
Grant Funding██████6%
Community Engagement█████5%
Procedural████4%
Historic Preservation████4%
Technology and Innovation████4%
Summary of Proceedings

Lodging Tax Advisory Committee (LTAC) Meeting – August 27, 2025

The Puyallup Lodging Tax Advisory Committee (LTAC) met on August 27, 2025, at 9:00 AM in City Hall to review and allocate 2026 lodging tax revenue. The committee faced a $144,000 shortfall between $857,000 in requests and $713,000 in available funds. After presentations and deliberation, the committee adopted a 5.3% across-the-board reduction from 2025 award levels, including a pro‑rata allocation for a new applicant, the Master Gardeners Foundation.

Discussion Items

  • City‑Initiated Proposals (Eric Johnson, Public Affairs Officer): The city requested funds for three projects: $100,000 for the "Puyallup Always in Season" tourism branding campaign; $35,000 to continue downtown street‑furniture replacements (benches, trash cans, bike racks); and $1.5 million for construction of the Meeker Festival Street project (converting a section of East Meeker into a pedestrian‑oriented street). The festival street project is expected to be fully funded if the LTAC allocation is approved. Councilmember Whitting noted that the project is tied to the redevelopment of the Cornforth Campbell lot, which includes 118 apartments (about 20% affordable), a food court, microbrewery, and 7–10 rowhouses.

  • Presentations by Applicant Organizations (in order):

    • All Things Fun Sports (Kim Field): Requested funding for 22–24 running/walking events, including the Mimosa Run, Grinch 5K, Haunted Hustle, and Christmas Eve run. Reported 53 zip codes from over 50 miles away and partnerships with local businesses. One business owner reported $4,000 in sales during a two‑hour event. The request was for $8,300 (based on 2025 award level) after cuts.
    • Arts Downtown (Becky Condor): All‑volunteer nonprofit managing Puyallup’s outdoor sculpture gallery (55 permanent, 5 rotating sculptures). Requested funds for maintenance and the biennial Fall Arts Festival (250 attendees). Councilmember Whitting suggested the group might be better suited for the Community Grants program. The committee recommended exploring that option for future funding.
    • Daffodil Festival (Scott Dellinger): Represented the 93rd‑year parade, with Puyallup as the largest leg (over 100,000 attendees across four cities). Requested $45,000 (2025 award) for live‑streaming and advertising. Noted that other cities (Tacoma, Sumner, Orting) provide in‑kind support but no monetary contributions. Committee discussed using PCTV production hours to reduce streaming costs.
    • Foothills Rails to Trails (John Hopkins): Event “Out Along the Riverbank” (3rd year) showcases trails and arts. Reported 20% annual attendance growth, with 20% of Rainier to Ruston participants staying overnight. Requested $18,584 (2025 award after cuts).
    • Master Gardeners Foundation (Jamie Mazzoni & Katie Daniels): First‑time applicant. Requested $22,011 to move the annual plant sale to the Washington State Fairgrounds (Agriplex building and Tractor Supply Arena), aiming to become the largest fundraiser plant sale in Washington. Committee agreed to fund $20,839.525 (pro‑rata 5.3% cut from request).
    • Northwest Sinfonietta (Karen Chu): Chamber orchestra that performs five concerts annually at Pioneer Park Pavilion. Reported attracting patrons from 15 states and 13 Washington counties. Requested $20,000 (2025 award).
    • Puyallup Historical Society at Meeker Mansion (Shelley Schlumpf): Requested $66,000 for operations, wedding tourism marketing, Cider Squeeze/Oregon Trail event, and a new Halloween event. Reported 24,000 visitors annually, 29% from out‑of‑state. Received $10,000 from Puyallup Main Street Association (PMSA) for billboard murals.
    • Puyallup Main Street Association (PMSA) (John Palmer): Requested funding for four events: Farmers Market, Meeker Days, Holiday Market/Santa Parade, and Sip (wine tasting). Reported 1,500 attendees per market, 25,000–50,000 for Meeker Days, and 14,000 for the holiday market. Committee noted that the Farmers Market is self‑sustaining but still requires LTAC support for overhead.
    • Puyallup Chamber of Commerce (Alison Shaper): Requested $100,000 for Red, White & Kaboom (Fourth of July celebration), $75,000 for Visitor Information Center, and $90,000 for Brewallop Craft Beer Festival. Offered to reduce by $30,000 (to $65,000 for VIC, $70,000 for Brewallop) if the city could contribute to covering the cost of moving the fireworks to July 4. Committee recommended that the city consider using city‑initiative LTAC funds to support the July 4 event.
    • Travel Tacoma + Pierce County (Dean Burke): DMO reported booking over 2,000 rooms countywide (3,000+ directly in Puyallup) and supporting sports events generating 6,100 room nights. Mentioned 2026 FIFA World Cup (Seattle fan zone, Puyallup Tribe as host sponsor). Burke offered to take a $10,000 reduction from his own organization’s request to help fund the Master Gardeners.
    • Fred Oldfield Western Heritage & Art Center (Kate): Requested funds for three events: Fred’s Birthday Celebration, Invitational Art Show, and Student Theater Production. Reported that art patrons stay minimum two nights and support local businesses.

  • Deliberation and Funding Decision: The committee discussed two approaches: algorithmic (proportional cut) vs. discretionary. Dean Burke advocated for an algorithmic approach to avoid “whimsical” cuts and to allow future strategic planning. Councilmember Whitting proposed using 2025 award levels as a baseline, then applying a uniform percentage reduction. After Burke’s $10,000 offer, the remaining shortfall was $38,000. The committee adopted a 5.3% reduction from each organization’s 2025 award, with the Master Gardeners receiving a pro‑rata reduction from their $22,011 request (resulting in $20,839.525). The motion passed unanimously (5 ayes, 0 nays).

Key Outcomes

  • Approved 2026 LTAC Recommendations (subject to City Council approval in October):
    • All Things Fun Sports: $8,300 (approx.)
    • Arts Downtown: $18,918 (approx.)
    • Daffodil Festival: $41,813
    • Foothills Rails to Trails: $18,584
    • Master Gardeners Foundation: $20,839.53
    • Northwest Sinfonietta: $18,918 (approx.)
    • Puyallup Historical Society: $62,370 (approx.)
    • Puyallup Main Street Association: $78,430 (approx.)
    • Puyallup Chamber of Commerce: $80,000 (approx.)
    • Travel Tacoma + Pierce County: $93,000 (approx., after Burke’s $10,000 voluntary reduction)
    • Fred Oldfield Center: $18,918 (approx.)
  • Additional Recommendations:
    • The committee recommended that the City Council consider allocating $30,000 from city‑initiative LTAC funds to help the Chamber host the July 4 event.
    • The committee suggested that Arts Downtown explore the Community Grants program for future funding.
    • The committee directed Eric Johnson (Public Affairs) to work with the Daffodil Festival to explore using PCTV production hours to reduce streaming costs.
  • Next Steps: The recommendations will be presented to the City Council during the October budget session. Council may request reevaluation by the LTAC. Final budget adoption is expected in December, after which contracts will be executed.

Meeting Transcript

Good morning, everyone. I appreciate everybody coming out today and all fresh shiny faces. We are lacking one of our of our uh committee members who's planning on being here online. So we're trying to get her online. So we're we'll uh delay any formal business until she arrives. Uh but in the meantime, let's go ahead and introduce ourselves for those that you don't know who you are. Uh would you like to start at that end, Kent. Okay. Good morning. Uh Dean Burke. Uh work from the president CEO of the visit to Coma Pierce County, where the destination marketing organization countywide, including POLUP, one of our great cities, and uh my second uh term here on the PLUP LTEC committee. So good morning. Good morning. I'm John Palmer, um president on the PL Downtown Main Street Association. Good morning, Alison Shaper. Um, President Zio at the Seminar PLU Chamber of Commerce, and this is my first LTAC committee. And I started one month after this um process last year. So this is new to me as well. I'm Ned Whitting. I'm a council member here in Puallop. Uh I got tapped to chair this meeting yesterday of about 10 o'clock, I think. So uh this is my first time at this activity too. Um Renee McLean, CEO of the Washington State Fair, and it's my first time. Uh good morning. I'm Tierra Rivers. Um I'm the general manager of the Holiday and Express here up on the Hill, here representing the Holiday and Express, the Fairfield, and the best Western Park Plaza. Um I'm a first-timer as well. And we are waiting for Tani Castro, who's the sales manager at Hampton Ian. So hopefully we'll have her online shortly. And Councilmember Whitting, it's my understanding that Miss Castro is actually on her way here now. So she should be a few minutes late, but she will be here. Okay, great. So just a little uh background on what we're going to try to achieve today. Um we uh have monies that are are derived from our uh local hotels from the lodging tax. And our are we have more expectations for that funds than we have funds available. So the purpose of this meeting is to whittle that down to uh so those two numbers meet. And just in terms of of the this the structure of this body is determined by state code, state statute. So and we're comprised of seven members, three of whom are contributors of uh the LTAC funds, hotels and the and the fair, and three that are recipients of the of the funds, and that's established by statute, and then uh I I represent the the city council. So we have one city council representative on the on the committee. And we had a situation this year where there might have been a perceived uh conflict of interest uh with the mayor. Uh so we uh he requested that I step in and avoid any perception of a conflict of interest. So uh that's why I'm here and I've had 24 hours of notice and and had to learn the rules and regulations and and uh go through my little package of stuff and sit in a council meeting last night, too. So I I plead not as prepared as I might like to be, but uh I'm sure we will get through this. Um so uh the uh I'm gonna delay public comment at this point. So let's jump on to the review of city initiated proposals. Eric, could you help us out with that? Are you you were gonna provide that, right? So this let me position this a little more to the 45% of our LTAC funds are are distributed by this are identified by this committee. The other 55% is distributed by the city council directly without input from this committee. So Eric's going to address the what the city council has decided to do with its share of the funds.

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