ABERDEEN, S.D.(HubCityRadio)- At Monday night’s City Council meeting, the council addressed a resolution dealing with the intent to raise the Bid occupation tax rate.  This was brought up by the Aberdeen Downtown Association for some of the beautification projects.  The current rate is four cents per square foot.  The Downtown Association would like to increase it to eight cents per square foot.

City Manager Robin Bobzien talks about how this came about.

City Attorney Ron Wager provides a timeline for this.

Wager emphasize that this resolution is not a question of raising the rate but this is an intent to start the process.

Executive Director Alexa Sheldon talks about the last time this rate went up.

Sheldon explains to the council what her group has been hearing from property owners in the district.

Among those that express some opposition to this potential hike is the owner of Dakota Ink & Toner, Matt Deilke.

Deilke talks to some of the property owners of the district who also expressed concerns about this.

One issue addressed was the lost revenue from parking fees. City Finance Officer Jordan McQuillen talks about how much revenue is lost.

The City Council made some comments about the resolution to get the process started.  Councilman Rob Ronayne said he would support this resolution but not sure he could support the tax hike at this time.

Councilman Justin Reinbold offer his support for the resolution but wanted to see comparisons to other cities in the state or region that’s similar in size to Aberdeen.

Mayor Travis Schaunaman believes in order for the tax hike to take place that communication must be better between the Downtown Association and the property owners.

The resolution passed on a unanimous vote(9-0).  The hearing date scheduled for the potential tax hike is set for Monday, July 15th.