First launched in 2006 under the Property and Business Improvement Area Law of 1989 (’89 Law), the Monterey County Tourism Improvement District (MCTID) is a benefit assessment district proposed to continue as a revenue source to help fund marketing and sales promotion efforts for lodging businesses in Monterey County. In 2018, an effort to modernize the MCTID led to the disestablishment of the ’89 Law district and re-establishing the MCTID pursuant to the Property and Business Improvement District Law of 1994 (’94 Law). The five-year term of the MCTID is set to expire on December 31, 2023, and the required number of lodging business owners have submitted a written petition to renew the district. Pending successful renewal of the MCTID, the Owner’s Association will request to modify the current MCTID term to end early on June 30, 2023, with the renewed district beginning on July 1, 2023.
The 94 Law allows for the renewal of multi-jurisdictional tourism improvement districts, with consent of the included jurisdictions being granted to one “lead” jurisdiction. The City of Monterey has requested consent to continue to act as the lead jurisdiction in the renewal of the MCTID (Attachment 2), administering the MCTID countywide. Adopting this resolution will give the City of Monterey authority to include the City of Carmel-by-the-Sea in the renewed MCTID.
Management District Plan:
The Management District Plan (Attachment 3) includes the proposed boundary of the renewed MCTID, a service plan and budget, and a proposed means of governance. The MCTID shall include all lodging businesses, existing and in the future, located within the boundaries of the unincorporated areas of Monterey County and the cities of Carmel-by-the-Sea, Del Rey Oaks, Gonzales, Greenfield, King City, Marina, Monterey, Pacific Grove, Salinas, Sand City, Seaside, and Soledad. The MCTID is divided into two (2) benefit zones as described in the Plan.
The cities and County shall continue to be responsible for collecting the assessment on a monthly, bi-monthly, or quarterly basis (including any delinquencies, penalties, and interest) from each lodging business located within the boundaries of the MCTID. The cities and County shall make all reasonable efforts to collect the assessments from each lodging business. The cities and County shall forward the assessments to Monterey County Destination Marketing Organization, Inc. d.b.a. Monterey County Convention and Visitors Bureau (MCCVB), serving as the MCTID Owner’s Association, which will have the responsibility of managing MCTID programs as provided in the Management District Plan.
Lodging business owners decided to pursue renewal of the MCTID in order to continue a revenue source devoted to marketing Monterey County as a tourist, meeting, and event destination. If renewed, the MCTID would generate an initial annual budget of approximately $8,856,266, increasing biennially as assessment rates increase, for the promotion of travel and tourism specific to Monterey County.
Result of recommended action:
The recommended action, adoption of the resolution granting consent to the City of Monterey (Attachment 1) to renew the MCTID and include the City of Carmel-by-the-Sea in the MCTID, will enable the City of Monterey and the Monterey County Convention and Visitors Bureau (MCCVB) to move forward with the MCTID renewal process. Upon successful renewal, the MCTID will continue to be governed by the TID Oversight Committee and the Management District Plan (MDP), facilitated by the Monterey City Council and the Monterey County Convention and Visitors Bureau (the Owner’s Association).