Shall the Estes Park Local Marketing District be established pursuant to the Intergovernmental Agreement between the Town of Estes Park and Larimer County?
Should we vote Town Hall a 2% pillow tax?
FACT: It has been proven in the Courts of the State of Colorado; that a statutory town does not have the authority to be involved in the marketing of private enterprise or collect a tax to do so.
FACT: Estes Park remains a Statutory Community.
FACT: It is against the law for your town to be involved, that’s why the…”legislative tom foolery and super secrete town county intergovernmental agreement”. If it was lawful why did it take twelve years, three trips to the state legislature, one veto, and a five year law suit? In that same time frame…40 Home Ruled Communities created marketing districts, not as town departments, but as subsidies to the business community. Is there another Marketing District in the world organized like this? If the answer to that question is NO…YOU MUST VOTE NO.
Why are these referendums so poorly written, so devoid of detail?
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What is the agreement with the County?
Who are those people appointed to the Marketing District?
If you do not know the details of the “agreement”…YOU MUST VOTE NO. Or brainlessly do as you’re told.
To trust Greg White and Tom Pickering with legal details like organizing a Marketing District would be lunacy and the act of a brainless newt. Check their record, look at the facts. To quote the towns’ attorney in 2004…“Trust me it’s legal, what do you think I do all day, I have conferred with colleagues and we are on firm legal ground.” Tested in Colorado Court the Town’s actions were found to be unlawful in every area! That brainless act cost this community thousands of our own dollars in legal fees. Based on credibility and past performance…YOU MUST VOTE NO.
This referendum is so poorly written on several levels, districts are all about the details and there are none here. No details…NO DISTRICT.
When creating a tax receiving district and a new tax, one should elect a group of individuals that are held accountable to receive that tax, like all the other districts in Colorado this should be an elected authority responsible to the voters that elected them. But not this marketing district, why? If you do not know…YOU MUST VOTE NO.
Who are responsible for the funds? One would elect a board for that purpose when creating a district to receive a tax. The fact is; town staff wrestled the advertising, marketing, sales, promotions, visitor’s services and the cash flow associated with those enterprises out of the hands of the business community, and into the hands of a town department. The Supreme Court of the State of Colorado determined that the trustees and its town department…”marketing/advertising/visitor services enterprise”…to be unlawful. If the voters create the marketing district and associated tax it will be on one side of a Legal Wall and the mechanisms to function will be on the other side of that Legal Wall. Who will fund all those salaries currently tucked into the town budget? Once trustee wives salaries are paid, how much money is left for real activity? How is all this intended to work? Tom Pickering and Greg White set this district up so no one is responsible, everything is deniable. The District Commissioners are titled “Marketing District Advisory Committee” whom will they be advising? If you do not know…YOU MUST VOTE NO.
Along with this entire existing group of mayor appointed boards, which board is “accountable” (for a better lack of terminology), if you’re a business man and you would like inputs? (1) The Advertising Advisory Board (2) The CVB Board (3) The Marketing Advisory Board (4) The Community Development Committee (5) Larimer County or (6) The Town Trustees? Which are accountable to you? If you do not know…YOU MUST VOTE NO! (Okay, I will answer this one for you Brainless Estes, they are accountable to NO ONE LOCALLY, you are a Statutory Town, ha ha jokes on you Brainless Estes.)
The truth is…once created…you are one intergovernmental agreement away from handing the money to the Trustees…to fund all those salaries. Not more advertising or marketing the brand, at best it will be a wash. Why else would Scotty W., Cory B., and Kathy P. be appointed? Come on! These people have a history of incompetence and political corruption. Look to the appointed EPURA commission as an example. Over twenty five years…out of the 50 million dollars diverted, the town received 32 million for salaries….and EPURA only spent 18 million on improvements. Go for it Brainless Estes!
IF what is being called ”Marketing – Branding – Sales” now currently being paid for with sale tax money is wildly effective and we simply need to expand a successful effort, I would be the first to say “why not a pillow tax?” Try as I might, I could not find a single unit of measure that would indicate what the town does is effectual. Visitation to RMNP is down every year for the past Ten Years! Down also are sales and associated sales taxes! The sad fact is…we have twice the square footage of retail producing less wealth for the community! Eighty five percent of the businesses in this community fail every five years…that’s approx. 900 businesses in ten years!!!..( OK, IF Susan Blackhurst's marketing doen't work - Eric Blackhurst will sell your business for you it's all GOOD). Included amongst those failures would be Susan Blackhurst’s marketing business, and Peter Marsh’s business. Most of the people employed by the Town in this department, or appointed to these commissions… were part of the failed “Chamber of Commerce”…having squandered those assets they have turned their attention to squandering sales tax money. Over the past ten years, this department has spent 2.8 million dollars per year…that would be roughly 28 million dollars on what? Declining numbers in every category!!! Say it ain’t so Brainless Joe. Facts are facts…except to Brainless Estes.
Is raising taxes the answer…especially in the middle of an economic down turn? Timing is everything and the timing here is God awful! Is raising your prices the answer…given the reality of the times? It’s only taxing the tourist? How insensitive is that to the national economic peril, especially when your customer is a middle class family of four living in the Midwest? All of this so called “vision” coming from a “trustee group”…that gave themselves raises and expanded the benefits package for themselves and their wives… directing sales tax dollars down valley was so very brainless.
Pay higher room rates in Estes Park this next summer. What is the ceiling on a room rate when you do not ad value to the visit (do not forget your forests are dying all around you)!!! And you call the “Estes Parkian” insensitive and a grenade lobber and opinions without facts, well if you use EP as a measure…your trustees are half wit mumbling idiots. NO BRAIN…NO PAIN!
If you cannot show me the value added to your customer for the increase in room rates …YOU MUST VOTE NO!
Every report coming out of Town Hall concerning the budget and sales tax collection, is crafted to appear as things are great and on track! How is that possible, the national economy is in a shambles, visitation is down, sales are down and small business is suffering the most? Town Hall is not affected??? If you believe Town Hall doesn’t need the money and their budget is on track, hiring relatives is alright, and deceiving your constituency is okay, and breaking state law is acceptable…well…Eric has some prime property for You!
Please consider, if you raise your rates 2%...what is the value added for your customer? What if your sales go down because your rates went up? It’s a tax…there will be no guarantees for performance! What will be new…is there a big idea...big whoopee direction marketing plan? If you do not know the plan…YOU MUST VOTE NO!
What will prevent the town staff from raising fees for leads again this year? Nothing…NO BRAIN…NO PAIN!
The local brain trust claims this tax is a no brainer, because they don’t expect you to think about it.
The Estes Parkian says vote NO. Why? well for many very important reasons…if you’re a business man it will be a wash - the money now being spent will be returned to the general fund…you will probably be seeing less money for advertising/marketing - not more. You will be raising your prices in the middle of a recession, with no value added for the end customer. Last but…not least…your advertising/marketing program is a “Political Town Department” it is not good business - it is a small town political popularity club…ineffective, inefficient, archaic, static and very dated. More money will not turn a frog into a prince!!! More money will be just more sand down the rat hole!!!
One last note, if you need to dump that business, Eric will list it for ya!
VIA CON DIOS
The Estes Parkian
