Edmond Life and Leisure - March 14, 2024

'Easter Dudes' have arrived

by Ray Hibbard, Publisher

Lisa puts out a theme for every holiday and the Easter season is no different. I love it but would never do it myself. It is a lot of work. Grandkids make it even more fun. Our grandson who is five came over the other day and has been seeing these displays since he was born. He looked up at the Easter bunnies on the fireplace and said, “Hey Misa (what all the grandkids call her) you have the Easter dudes up.”

That has kind of stuck at our house. We no longer have Easter bunnies, but we have very cool Easter Dudes instead. I would encourage you to adopt the same name for your rabbits that help bring in the holiday. After all, these are just another part of the pagan side of this holiday. It is meant to be the resurrection and the hope God gave us. The meaning is so deep and is the foundation of Christianity but can get lost in all the candy, egg hunts and the display of Easter Dudes.

That was always handled differently in my house growing up. We are Orthodox Christian and because of a calendar shift our Easter usually falls a week later then when the western rite churches celebrate the holiday. This year is really out of alignment since Orthodox Easter is a month later. The truth about the difference is that we Lebanese like to buy the easter stuff on sale.

It always gave us a chance to have fun with all the pagan trappings about Easter including the Easter Dudes. That part of the celebration was different because when Orthodox Easter was held it was all about the resurrection of our Lord and Savior. It was clear from a very young age that the two were different celebrations and allowed us to concentrate on the Holy week leading into the resurrection. I would invite you to attend one of our Easter services at St. Elijah church. It is moving and beautiful.

Increasing the lodging/visitor tax

Our paper goes to press before the Edmond City Council meetings. This week, the council should be voting on putting an increase to the lodging tax on the ballot for citizens to vote on in June. We anticipate this will pass and for good reason.

This is not a tax that we in Edmond pay most of the time. It is paid by folks who come to Edmond and stay in our hotels, motels and shortterm rental housing. In 1994, voters approved a 4% lodging tax on overnight stays at lodging properties inside Edmond City Limits that is still in place. Registered voters in Edmond could vote on a proposition to increase it to 6%.

Most of us have gotten multiple raises on our pay since 1994. It is unfair to continue to ask our good folks at Visit Edmond to continue to meet their goals at the same rate they were granted in 1994. People who stay the night in Edmond’s 13 hotels, one bed & breakfast and more than 150 short-term rentals located inside Edmond city limits pay this tax.

We travel a bit, and I can tell you that even at 6% it is lower than any tax or fees I see on my bill for lodging. Most cities have gone way beyond a hotel and motel tax. They add resort fees, tourism fees and more to your night’s stay. We are blessed not to have to make a decision on travel based on this fees, but I still think they are too much. Edmond only has the one lodging tax and a 2% increase is not out of line as an increase.

Revenue from the visitor tax is used by Visit Edmond, a city department, to market Edmond as a destination and attract new meetings and events to increase economic impact. It funds tourism efforts within the city of Edmond and nearby attractions to encourage overnight stays.

When visitors come to Edmond, they generate sales tax dollars that benefit the city of Edmond and its residents through projects like road improvements, new parks and much more. My friend Steve Kreidler put it best when he said that tourism dollars are the best because, “People come to town, leave their money and then go home.” Visitors do not require growth of infrastructure, police or fire budgets. They visit our shops, eat in our restaurants and fill up their cars with gas which all generates revenue for the city without providing new housing and causing zoning changes.

What are the numbers?

On a $100 room, the current visitor tax of 4% charges visitors $4 per night. Under the proposal, this cost would increase to $6, using the $100-room example. Passage of the proposal is projected to add $350,000 annually for tourism development and opportunities. I cannot remember the last time I paid only $100 for a room but you get the idea. The increase is not so much that it would keep people from coming here because of the price but provides the funds to increase the number of folks coming to visit.

How much is visitor tax in cities around us?

Edmond’s current visitor tax is the lowest in our region. Oklahoma City is 5.5%, Guthrie and Stillwater are 7% and Norman is 8%. It is time we brought our rate up to the area standards and allowed Visit Edmond to do the work they can do for us. It is amazing the work and success they have had on such a limited budget for they need for voters to let them get to their full potential with more funding. And it is funding that we do not pay for the most part.

How will the dollars be used?

Marketing Edmond as a destination for visitors with new branding and more advertising dollars. Develop and implement a robust sports tourism strategy to promote Edmond facilities as a destination for local, regional and national sports tournaments. (KickingBird Golf, Edmond Center Court, A.C. Caplinger, MAC, Pelican Bay, Service Blake Soccer Complex, Edmond 66 Park) Provide sponsorships to attract, retain and sustain conferences and events.

Partner with Edmond facilities to bid on NEW events. For example: Regional Conferences like Great Plains AMBUCS coming to Edmond Conference Center. Bidding on the NCAA Division II Men’s Golf Championships during May 17-21, 2027 and the NCAA Division II Men’s and Women’s Tennis championships during May 1823, 2027. Supporting UCO to keep the OSSAA State High School Football Championship.

I served on the Visit Edmond advisory board for almost a decade. I took myself off two years ago only because I felt we needed younger minds to take our tourism to the next level. As an accountant I can tell you that Visit Edmond are good stewards of their funds and that 100% of this increase will go directly to their work and not be taken away for other purposes.

The organization has had good leadership in the past and their current leader, Jennifer Thornton, is clear on her vision and what can be accomplished with the increased funds. She also has a skill set to bring folks together as does her staff. Hopefully, the council will have voted to put this on the ballot by the time you read this, and we can take the funding restrictions off of Visit Edmond and give them the opportunity to increase our tourism to help out businesses prosper.

(Ray Hibbard, publisher, may be reached at ray@edmondpaper.com)