ELAC tables hotel-analytics subscription after year‑end budget review

The ELAC (lodging‑tax advisory) committee on April 14 reviewed year‑end fund numbers and marketing plans for 2026 and decided to postpone buying a hotel‑performance analytics subscription while members examine data already in the shared folder.

Committee staff told members the beginning fund balance carried into 2026 was $41,712 and, under current budgeted expenditures and estimated revenue, staff projected a 2026 year‑end fund balance in the mid‑$300,000s. The presentation covered the 2025 stoplight budget, revenue and expense snapshots, and allocations for marketing, the visitor center and seasonal programs.

The subscription under consideration—described in the meeting as the licensed CoStar/STAR hotel‑performance module—was presented by staff as a way to get proprietary monthly analytics for the city’s hotel comp set. Staff noted the published price sent by the vendor is about $430 per month (roughly $5,160 annually) and emphasized that data from the vendor are license‑restricted and not shareable in raw form. Members debated whether the committee should buy the subscription now, arguing it could provide multi‑year trend context useful for planning the 2027–28 budget, while others said World Cup activity and recent pandemic‑era anomalies make it a poor time to lock in a subscription without deeper review.

After discussion the committee directed staff to: give members time to review the materials already posted in the shared folder, prepare a side‑by‑side comparison of Street Sense/marketing metrics for 2023–25, and, if requested, arrange a CoStar overview for the committee. The group agreed to table a purchase decision until the May meeting so members can examine those materials and return with questions.

Chair (opening the discussion) framed the meeting’s purpose as protecting and thoughtfully investing the lodging‑tax funds “to help both grow as a destination, support our local economy and make sure we are creating a real value for our city and the communities.” Staff committed to returning more comparative analytics and conversion‑study results at the next meeting to support a decision.

The committee also approved routine agenda items (minutes and agenda changes) during the session and set the next regular meeting for May 19 to continue budget and analytics discussions.