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Willow Park pauses HOT spending while council drafts rules for hotel-tax grants and billboard use
Summary
City staff proposed a formal hotel-occupancy-tax (HOT) policy and application process and the council authorized HOT-funded billboard leases while staff completes legal review and a spending policy to document measurable visitor impacts.
City staff told the Willow Park City Council on Jan. 13 that they will pause discretionary spending from the city’s hotel-occupancy-tax (HOT) account pending a written policy and legal review, and the council authorized continued HOT-fund leases for two billboards on I‑20 to preserve control of city-located signage.
Rose, who presented the HOT-funds overview, told council that state law requires HOT expenditures to ‘‘put heads in beds’’ and limits spending to defined categories such as advertising, convention facilities, promotion of the arts, historical restoration, sporting events and signage directing visitors to attractions. She said the city already meets a required advertising threshold (about 14% of HOT revenue) but wanted a formal application requiring applicants to document projected out-of-town attendance, prior-year attendance, marketing plans and measurable visitor impact.
Council then considered a staff recommendation to renew two Lamar billboard leases on the city‑hall frontage (eastbound and westbound I‑20). Staff said securing both sides preserves the city’s control over what appears on the signs; renewal pricing quoted by staff was roughly $33,111 per side for a one‑year renewal and Lamar provided weekly impression estimates used in campaign planning. Several residents asked what measurable economic development resulted from the billboards; staff responded that the signs establish city visibility and meet the advertising criteria HOT rules require. Council voted to authorize use of HOT funds for the billboards while staff develops a formal ordinance and application process.
Staff reported the city’s HOT account balance is available for such uses and said it is preparing the ordinance, the application form, and legal vetting before approving other requests. Council members asked staff to return with policy language and a framework for measurable outcomes before approving additional disbursements.
