County lodging-tax committee proposes $1.5M small capital grant round; Ellensburg urges open eligibility

A representative of the Kittitas County Lodging Tax Advisory Committee on Sept. 2 briefed the Ellensburg City Council on a proposed out‑of‑cycle small capital grant program funded from lodging-tax receipts and asked for council feedback on eligibility priorities.

Jocelyn Carriker, a committee member, said the committee discussed opening a small capital grant round this year because available funds exceed prior cycles’ levels. The committee floated making up to $1,500,000 available countywide; historically small grants have been capped much lower (staff said typical awards had been in the tens of thousands, with past maximums around $50,000 to $70,000). Carriker said one option discussed was limiting eligibility or offering preference for municipalities that did not receive a recent large capital grant, but the committee sought council input before finalizing criteria.

Carriker outlined an expected timetable: the committee planned a decision at its Sept. 10 meeting in the Commissioners’ conference room and anticipated issuing an RFP with roughly a four-week application window after that meeting so funds could be distributed quickly. She said committee meetings are typically the second Wednesday of the month at 1 p.m. and that recordings of recent committee meetings will be published for public review.

Ellensburg officials voiced concerns about restricting eligibility only to municipalities that did not receive prior large grants. One councilmember said the funds should be used to maximize countywide benefit rather than favor municipalities that had missed earlier rounds; the mayor noted that Ellensburg would be disadvantaged by any such restriction and opposed it. Other councilmembers suggested alternatives, such as awarding scoring preference to previous applicants that were not funded, rather than an outright eligibility restriction. Committee membership described at the meeting: four members representing payers to the lodging-tax fund and recipients; the chair (Commissioner O’Shaughnessy) was noted to be present but absent due to fair commitments.

Why it matters: up to $1.5 million in lodging-tax funds could be made available outside the committee’s usual cycle, creating a near-term opportunity to support tourism, events, and capital needs countywide. Council feedback will inform the committee’s decision on eligibility and scoring ahead of its Sept. 10 meeting.

Next steps: the Lodging Tax Advisory Committee expected to meet Sept. 10 to decide whether to proceed with an RFP and final eligibility rules; staff said materials and recordings would be published for public review.