Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Local Economy topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Franklin County approves transient-room-tax amendment to back up to $1.8 million in bonds for Grama Theater renovation
Summary
Fiscal Court approved a second-reading amendment to apply an additional transient-room (hotel) tax to authorize up to $1.8 million in tax-revenue bonds to finance renovations and refund prior Grama Theater bonds; the court emphasized the fee targets visitors, not residents.
Frankfort — Franklin County Fiscal Court voted Oct. 15 to amend a local transient-room tax so the county can issue up to $1.8 million in dedicated tax-revenue bonds to finance renovations at the Grama (Grand) Theater.
Judge opened the second-reading ordinance and said the measure is “not a new 2% tax” on county residents but an additional fee applied to hotel rooms paid by visitors. “This is something that comes from the hotels,” the Judge told the court, adding the revenue would fund renovations such as new seats, air conditioning, lights and the sound system and help retire prior bonds.
Why it matters: the amendment allows the county to offer net bond proceeds not to exceed $1.8 million and to apply the added fee toward bond retirement. Treasurer Amy reported the bonds were modeled to be paid off well before the statutory maximum and said the county expects the debt service could be retired sooner if hotel tax receipts grow.
Court members discussed how the statutory mechanism works and how the fund could be used for other downtown art or performance venues once debt service ends. Squire Whiston explained the legislative tool: it permits small, per-room fees in towns with hotels to support public arts and tourism-oriented projects.
What happened next: the court conducted the required second-reading voice votes and passed the ordinance amendment and a companion bond-authorization ordinance permitting issuance of the dedicated tax-revenue refunding bonds. The motions passed by voice vote; no recorded roll-call tallies were provided in the transcript.
Next steps: the county will proceed with bonding steps and related closing documents, and the treasurer will continue monitoring bond interest and arbitrage calculations as the financing is finalized.
