Lakewood advisers warn lodging-tax funds must adapt as visitor patterns shift

Dean Burke, a member of Lakewood’s Lodging Tax Advisory Committee and president and CEO of VISIT Tacoma Pierce County, told the Lakewood City Council at its Aug. 11 study session that Pierce County’s tourism economy has recovered unevenly since 2019 and that the county remains “5% to 9% behind 2019” in visitor volume in many places. Burke said lodging receipts by dollar amount have exceeded 2019 levels in some markets because of higher room rates, but overall visitation counts remain down and this year appear “flat to just maybe slightly down.” He told council members that international visitation has lagged and has hit Seattle hardest, which affects neighboring Pierce County. The council also heard from Linda Smith of the Lakewood Chamber of Commerce, another LTAC member, who described local changes in inventory: “Between Fife, Hosmer, and Lakewood … we’ve seen about 800 rooms removed from inventory in the low-end sector,” she said, citing conversions of smaller properties to non-tourism uses. Burke quantified other local shifts: short-term rentals in Pierce County rose from about 300 in February 2019 to roughly 3,200 today, while the county has about 6,000 hotel/motel rooms. He said short-term rental occupancy can be monitored but with about a 60–75 day reporting lag and that the sector “is healthy” now, though local regulation can change its trajectory. Both committee members described sports and group business as key drivers of recovery. Burke said youth and amateur sporting events rebounded quickly after the pandemic and gave examples: a girls gymnastics meet the county recruited 10 years ago has grown to a five-day event with about 4,800 competitors from 36 states, producing roughly 15,000 room nights in less than a week; Chambers Creek cross-country events have generated about 41,000 room nights over six years. Councilmembers asked whether Lakewood’s LTAC process should change to encourage more events in the city center. A council member proposed geographic targeting — for example, awarding extra points to applications that cite Colonial Plaza or other downtown venues — and asked whether the statutory split between capital and noncapital funding should remain. Burke said he commonly sees a capital/noncapital split and recommended retaining a capital component because “asset development … is critical.” On rules and oversight, Burke also criticized the vagueness of state lodging-tax language and recommended that Lakewood’s LTAC adopt clearer, tighter local scoring and ROI metrics. He pointed to Pierce County’s LTAC and the countywide tourism promotion area (TPA) as examples of bodies that added stricter standards to focus expenditures. Council members asked about recent large awards to local nonprofits. Linda Smith said increases to Friends of LakeWold and Lakewood Playhouse were tied partly to one-time capital work and to requests for increased marketing dollars; committee members balanced capital eligibility with a requirement that the city “own the facility” for certain capital awards. Burke and Smith briefly discussed FIFA activity and a Seattle-centered World Cup next summer. Burke said Seattle will host six matches and that the event will create state-level “fan zones” including one in Tacoma; the Puyallup Tribe of Indians is a regional sponsor and will market in fan activations. He called the event a “huge” statewide impact but said final details remain incomplete. No council motion or vote was taken on LTAC policy changes at the meeting. Councilmembers asked staff and the committee to consider tighter local scoring, possible geographic incentives for downtown venues, and whether any state legislative changes should be pursued to expand permissible uses of lodging-tax funds. Ending: Councilmembers thanked the committee for the update and indicated they wanted follow-up detail at return meetings about targeted scoring, possible recruitment of additional committee members across lodging and event sectors, and evidence (room-night counts) showing the local impact of specific events.