Port Orchard advisory committee forwards recommended lodging-tax allocations to council ahead of FIFA year

The Port Orchard Lodging Tax Advisory Committee on Tuesday heard more than a half-dozen presentations from local tourism and event groups and voted to send its recommended 2026 lodging-tax funding allocations to City Council for consideration.

Chair John Morrissey opened the meeting by reminding members that the committee’s role is to allocate lodging-tax dollars collected from short-term rentals, hotels and lodging. "We're gonna allocate some funds that we take in, on our short term rentals and hotels and lodging," Morrissey said, asking members to weigh requests against the statutory purpose of the fund and the fixed pool available. Committee members discussed a roughly $130,000 pool for the year as the amount available to distribute.

Presenters urged a mix of short-term event support and longer-term marketing. Samantha Smith, president of the Port Orchard Waterfront Alliance, said the Alliance wants funds to help keep downtown active during construction and to expand night markets, music and other events timed around the FIFA period. "We're really gearing down on basically our best bringing people to downtown," Smith said, noting concerns about road closures and the need to steer visitors to open businesses.

Josh, representing Love Kitsap, framed FIFA as a once-in-a-generation opportunity but urged a 365-day approach to promotion: "FIFA is a watershed generational moment for travel and tourism for the Pacific Northwest," he said, arguing that investments in photography, advertising and persistent destination marketing would pay off beyond the six-week event period. The group also described partnerships such as Space Needle kiosks and Bremerton fan‑zone marketing.

Smaller and volunteer-run events also made the case for funding. The Saints Car Club and Kitsap Mustang Club described longstanding car shows that bring visitors and charitable donations to the community; the Mustang Club asked for an amount the committee later discussed as a modest operating grant while the Saints presentation emphasized vendor revenues and regional reach.

The Port Orchard Historic Theater Foundation outlined both capital and program needs: speakers said the foundation secured a $377,000 Washington State capital grant for infrastructure work but still faces an interior funding gap and requested operating support to pay artists and buy materials once construction allows increased programming.

Deliberations focused on two tensions: whether to prioritize short-term, FIFA-related expenditures and whether to concentrate money in organizations with broader marketing reach or to spread funds across many local events. Committee members repeatedly returned to the statutory allowable categories — marketing and tourism operations — and noted that operations can include event-specific costs such as portable toilets, traffic control and staging.

After lengthy discussion and several suggested adjustments to the draft slate, the committee chair called a motion to send the committee’s recommendation to City Council for consideration. The motion was seconded and, after no further discussion, carried. "Motion carries," Morrissey said; the recommendation will be presented to City Council at its first January meeting.

What happens next: the committee’s findings and the recommended allocation will appear on the City Council agenda in January for review and final action. Committee members and staff said they will provide clarifying contract language and, where appropriate, stipulations about how specific awards may be spent (for example, restricting certain dollars from being used solely on the FIFA six‑week window).