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County staff flag July drop in collections; STAR data shows mixed hotel trends
Summary
Staff reported a 12.9% negative figure in July bed-tax collections but said STAR hotel data for Clay County showed occupancy and revenue trends that compared favorably with nearby counties. Staff attributed part of the decline to vacation-rental changes and noted a new Middleburg hotel is opening soon.
Tourism staff reported Sept. 3 that Clay County’s July bed-tax collection showed a year-over-year decline (a negative 12.9% figure cited in the presentation), a change staff said aligns with national tourism trends discussed at the Florida Governor’s Conference.
Staff member Sam (presenting from the statewide DMO conference) summarized results from a Tourism Economics session and said world affairs and tariffs are among the national factors affecting travel. The county’s STAR hotel-data report, staff said, shows Clay County remained up year over year relative to peer counties even though some local indicators showed declines.
The council discussed whether the bed-tax decline reflects hotels, vacation rentals, or both. Staff said bed-tax totals reported to the county include registered vacation rentals, and that vacation-rental collections have shown the larger drop. Staff said they can request STAR or collection reports that separate hotels and vacation-rental performance for more detail.
Staff also noted a new hotel in Middleburg is expected to open within a month and said that additional room inventory should be positive for future bed-tax collections.
Council members asked staff to provide separated bed-tax details (hotel vs. vacation rental) in a future report and requested continued monitoring of STAR and other industry data. Staff said updated numbers available as of the day before the meeting showed a 6% bounce-back from the earlier drop.
