Momentum continues for hospitality taxes, jobs

Tax collections and employment figures in the Fort Smith and Van Buren hospitality sectors indicate positive momentum compared to 2010.

For the first four months of 2011, hospitality tax collections in Van Buren total $122,798, up 2.2% compared to the 2010 period. April tax collections totaled $33,244, up 5.2% compared to April 2010. Van Buren collects a 1% tax on lodging and a 1% tax on restaurants.

“I anticipate this trend to continue for the summer months as people plan closer-to-home vacations,” said Maryl Koeth, executive director of the Van Buren Advertising & Promotion Commission. “The Van Buren/Fort Smith area is an economical destination for vacationers from Oklahoma, Texas and southern Missouri. We will continue to target those markets in a tighter radius to the River Valley area throughout the summer months.”

For all of 2010, Van Buren hospitality tax collections totaled $395,195, down just 0.62% compared to 2009. For all of 2009, hospitality tax collections were down 7.1% compared to 2008. Hospitality tax collections for Van Buren in 2008 totaled $410,914, up 7.4% over 2007 and up more than 14.5% over 2006.

Fort Smith hospitality tax collections during the first four months of 2011 total $214,171, up over the $213,694 in the 2010 period. Fort Smith hospitality taxes are collected from a 3% tax on hotel room rates. However, April collections totaled $53,491, down 6% compared to April 2010. The decline is primarily the result of a 60-90 day overdue payment from the former Best Western Inn & Suites, located at 6500 Rogers Ave., one of Fort Smith’s newest hotels. Tim Whitten, who owns the hotel, recently received rezoning approval from the Fort Smith Board of Directors for property adjacent to the hotel as part of his plan to build a Buffalo Wild Wings restaurant.

The April collections from Fort Smith and Van Buren fit with metro jobs data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. According to the BLS, the Fort Smith metro leisure and hospitality sector employed an estimated 9,200 in April, up from 8,900 in March and up from the 8,600 employed in April 2010. However, sector employment is down 6.12% from a high of 9,800 in August 2008.

Claude Legris, executive director of the Fort Smith Convention and Visitors Bureau, said indications suggest the summer will show more visits than in the previous year, especially if fuel prices moderate.

“Advertising responses, traffic through the Visitor Center and visitation at the National Historic Site continue to run ahead of last year. We’re hoping these indicators coupled with the decreasing price of gasoline will provide for a positive summer for tourism,” Legris said.

Hotel tax collections in Fort Smith during all of 2010 totaled $678,934, up 1.04% compared to 2009. During 2009, Fort Smith hospitality tax collections totaled $671,912, down more than 16% from 2008. Fort Smith hospitality tax collections in 2008 totaled $803,591, 11% more than the $723,548 collected in 2007, and more than 19% above 2006 collections.

Arkansas’ 2% tourism collection garnered $2.355 million for the first quarter of 2011, up 1.34% compared to the 2010 period. For all of 2010, the tax generated $11.492 million, up 0.99% compared to 2009. The collections were off the 2008 high of $12.005 million.

The state’s tourism sector — leisure & hospitality jobs — increased to 104,100 workers in April, continuing a positive trend that began in September 2010. The sector employed 102,600 in March, and 98,900 in April 2010.