John Day City Manager Nick Green addresses a special city council meeting at the Grant County Regional Airport on March 12.

Officials from the city of John Day and Grant County Chamber of Commerce say they are making amends after a heated discussion at a recent meeting.

Thirteen minutes into a study session between the two groups over transient room tax distribution May 21, representatives from both sides raised their voices and criticized each other, and the meeting ended in tension.

But representatives from the groups met the following week amid a call for working together, and they are moving past the disagreement.

Cause for tension

Chamber Office Manager Tammy Bremner told the Eagle May 28 that the tension between the chamber and the city began near the end of the May 12 John Day City Council meeting. She said she felt City Manager Nick Green was unfair in his assessment that the city could do a better job of promoting tourism in John Day with the transient room tax funds than the chamber, which receives much of its funding from the county tax on hotel and RV park users.

“That is what kind of what started the main tension, and I hate to throw that in (Green’s) face because he has backed off, and I really don’t want to start another fight with him or any of the city council, but that’s where it came from,” Bremner said.

At the beginning of the TRT meeting on May 21, chamber President Jerry Franklin began by thanking the council for setting up the meeting, but then shared what had been concerning him.

“It’s been kind of disturbing myself hearing rumors lately that we’re not effectively promoting the county and John Day’s best interest, which we firmly disagree with,” Franklin said. “And your comments and your memos tend to lead in that direction.”

John Day Mayor Ron Lundbom quickly clarified that it was not the city’s intent to discount the work the chamber has done.

“It wasn’t our intention to bash the county (chamber). It’s not the case,” Lundbom said.

Green added it was not their intent to criticize the chamber’s work.

The transient room tax

The county’s transient room tax ordinance calls for the collection of 8% of what hotel and RV park operators charge for one night, paid by the temporary visitor. The tax administration office keeps a small fee, and about 25% goes into a fund for grant funding through the chamber and the remaining amount is given to the chamber.

“The purpose of this tax is to raise revenues to be used for tourism promotion and tourism related facilities in the county,” according to Ordinance No. 2012-04. 

According to the agenda for the TRT meeting, the county’s transient room tax generated $191,749 countywide from all operators last year. Operators in John Day generated $111,495.

“I would like to see that money (generated from John Day) invested in John Day, and I’d like to see it used for tourism promotion and community development projects in John Day,” Green said during a city council meeting on May 12. “Those hotels exist here because of the infrastructure investment that we’ve made as a city and the city taxpayers. I think that money should stay in our community.”

The city discussed implementing its own additional TRT tax or implementing a city TRT tax in place of the county’s.

“Neither option precludes our ability to work with the Chamber of Commerce in the future,” the city’s May 21 agenda states. “However, the responsibility for the disposition of John Day’s TRT funds, including their budgeting and annual audits, will reside with the John Day City Council, the John Day Budget Committee, and city staff and/or city TRT committees as appropriate. This will ensure the funds are used appropriately, transparently and effectively to achieve their intended purpose.”

Working together

Amid the argument over the best use of TRT funds during the work session, members from both organizations highlighted the importance of working together.

“I would like to step in a little bit before it gets completely fired up and we leave against each other,” said Councilor Shannon Adair. “I guess the biggest concern I have is that we aren’t working together. We need to work together.”

Didgette McCracken, a board member from the chamber, said the two organizations have the same goals — an increase in visitors and increase revenue in the county.

“A lot of the things that we are talking about is how we would spend the money, and I know we all have specifics that we would like seen done or improved, and they all seem great, but I think before we get to that stage of pointing fingers on what needs spent, we need to think of an efficient way to make that happen,” McCracken said. “… What can we overlap on or what things make sense for us both to invest in, and why can’t we agree on that together? Those things can happen through strategy and planning…”

Councilor Elliot Sky said he also noticed the silo effect, where the city works alone and seems to butt heads with other organizations at times, but he hasn’t seen a lot of reaching out to the city to coordinate with planning.

He said that a lack of coordination leads to a feeling that the city is working on an isolated path and is doing things others don’t want, when he feels that the projects are designed for the benefits and interests of the city and county.

“Part of my frustration has always been … how can we bolster the city’s investment and recognize it’s improving the county as a whole and get these different organizations — the county, the cities and the chamber of commerce — to unify along a vision so we can piggyback on ourselves,” Sky said.

Councilor Paul Smith said county residents need the chamber, cities and the county court to work together.

“We’re too small,” he said. “We don’t have the resources and the revenues, as Didgette said, to be siloed.”

The aftermath

After the hour-and-a-half session, development continued.

“I personally appreciate what you guys are trying to accomplish,” Franklin said at the end of the TRT discussion. “You’re thinking outside of the box, and it’s the first time in many years that I’ve been here that that’s happened. And I hope you can connect those dots and make this work, and it’s going to be good for the whole county.”

In an interview on May 28, Green acknowledged the tension in the room during the work session. Green said anytime conversations on changing the status quo come up, there can be a little bit of discomfort, but the city is working to arrive at the right solution for the community.

“I know it probably felt like there was a lot of tension in the room,” he said. “Change is disruptive. Tension is not a bad thing. Sometimes you need to have conflict in order to figure out what you really value and what’s important and how you can move forward together. I want to make sure the chamber understands we respect them and the work they do.”

Green said the chamber receives a bulk of its TRT funds from the city, and that’s not going to change.

Green said the conversation is now about working together to accomplish a shared vision. He said both groups need to be on the same page in terms of expectations and how they are going to achieve them.

Bremner said she met with Green May 27, which helped relieve tension, as both organizations are looking towards the future. She said she hopes for improved communications between the groups.

She said the chamber is currently working to complete a logo, which presents a great opportunity to work with John Day and all the cities in the county.