Council OKs $65,000 in accommodations tax allocations
By JIM FAILE
DARLINGTON - Darlington County Council gave unanimous approval to recommended allocations for $65,000 in state accommodations tax funding for the coming fiscal year.
Council approved the recommendations of the county’s Accommodations Tax Advisory Committee during its April 19 meeting.
The committee considered requests totaling $171,300 from 21 organizations or projects for accommodations tax funding for 2010 – 2011.
The state accommodations tax is the tax charged by the state on hotel and motel accommodations. The money collected from the tax is redistributed to local governments to support local tourism efforts.
Again this year, the largest chunk of accommodations tax money will go to the Darlington County Tourism Office, which will receive $25,386. The agency had requested $38,500.
The Hartsville Downtown Development Association will get $14,215 for three of its events. The committee recommended $8,929 for the RenoFest Bluegrass Music Festival, 8,929 for Jazz!Carolina and $1,357 for the Cotton Harvest Bluegrass Music Festival. All of the money will go to advertise the festivals.
The Greater Darlington Chamber of Commerce will get a total of $4,186 to promote four events: $1,850 for the Lamar Egg Scramble Jamboree; $1,065 for Racefest; $706 for Taste of the Farm; and $565 for Yam & Ham Jam. The chamber will use the money for advertising, banners, flyers and operating expenses. The committee rejected the chamber’s requests for funding for the Little Southern 500 and the Society Hill Tour of Homes and Progressive Dinner.
The committee recommended $5,086 for the S.C. Junior golf Foundation tournament in Hartsville to help with advertising and operating expenses. The Butler Heritage Foundation will get $3,100 for Butler Heritage Week in Hartsville.
The Darlington County Cultural Realism Complex will get $2,714, while the Hartsville Family YMCA will get $2,071 for events.
Another $2,071 will go to the Society Hill Catfish Festival, while the town of Society Hill will get $1,286 for work at the Society Hill Train Depot.
The committee recommended $1,714 for Coker College for two events, $1,071 for a performance by Doug Varone & Dancers and $643 for the Aquila Touring Theater.
The Pilot Club of Darlington will get $1,571 to help with the S.C. Sweet Potato Festival, while the Old Darlington District of the S.C. Genealogical Society in Hartsville will receive $1,000 to help with operating expenses.
The Greater Hartsville Chamber of Commerce will receive $600 to help pay for marketing and advertising for the Fourth of July Family Fireworks Festival.