Dear Residents, Citizens, 2nd Home Owners, Hotels, Motels, Vacation Rental Owners, Property Managers, Hotel Trades, Local businesses, and our valued tourist and neighboring communities. In fact, anyone who cares about Rockaway Beach – our beautiful beach town and community. Please read and share. Enough is enough. I am a full time resident of Rockaway Beach, a small business owner and I operate a legal and very successful vacation rental property that has contributed to Rockaway TLT since I opened it. As many of you know, I’m also involved in a lot of activities, events and projects to build, enable and support the folks who live and visit our town and surrounding communities. I am the least political person I know, but I care deeply about this City and community and can’t stand the disrespect and lack of transparency that the City has with its residents and constituents.
ENOUGH IS ENOUGH. I BEG YOU. Please contact Rockaway Beach City Hall in writing and request that they publish a full detailed report on all TLT (the 10% Transient Lodging Taxes) that have been collected by the City since January 2018 to present day. Please question what funds have been collected by the City during this period and a detailed report (by line item) showing what these funds have been spent against. In fact, request that they publish a full City budget and hold a town hall meeting with 4 weeks notice and fully promoted to share this with the public and media so it can be accurately reported and documented.
ASK FOR A PUBLIC AUDIT AND REPORT ON TLT. I for one am tired of the lack of transparency that the City shares with its residents and tax payers. The $1M+ TLT funds are collected and designated to fund certain projects that benefit and build our community and are not in place to offset other City expenses like fines and lawyer fees or salaries. DO NOT accept any changes to the proposed TLT in Rockaway Beach until the City promises to publish this information. DO NOT allow the City to spend TLT dollars without providing full disclosure and transparency.
ASK FOR FULL TRANSPARENCY TODAY!!! I promise if you think you know what’s going on, you don’t.
TLT funds should be used to build and support the infrastructure, support the tourist experience and tourist-related facilities, which, as we know, will help all our businesses thrive during tourist, shoulder and off-season.
Share with friends and anyone who cares about Rockaway Beach, OUR (meaning “the peoples”) beautiful community on the Oregon Coast. Send your letters in writing to Terri Michel, City Manager, at terri@rockawaybeachor.us and keep a copy. Insist on your rights. Let the City know that this cloak of secrecy and lack of transparency has to end.
TELL THEM #timesup
If you want the truth and the facts, ask your City officials to publish them.” http://corb.us/index.asp
Proposed TLT Ordinance Change on the Agenda for next weeks City Hall Meeting. http://corb.us/…/%7B087A747…/uploads/SKM_C65819032615160.pdf
Respectfully,
Mike Arseneault, Concerned & Caring Rockaway Beach Resident