City Council Minutes 1998 06 16 - Laserfiche WebLink

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During the term, Sam's Club and the City will share the sales tax received by the City on a 50/50 basis. After the one year term, Sam's Club will no longer be entitled to any sales tax rebate and the City will receive and retain 100% thereafter. The City will remm the Sam's Club portion of the sales tax on a quarterly basis but only after the City has received the sales tax. Davidson called for the applicant's presentation. Walter Koelbel, Jr., Koelbel & Company, stated their request was correctly articulated by Light. Davidson called for Council questions and comments. Sisk expressed disapproval of a sales tax rebate to WalMart Corporation. He feels Council would be setting a precedent for sales tax rebates from future developments. Lathrop replied that he feels rebating approximately $450 thousand in return for a higher quality building and projected sales tax revenues of almost $1 million per year is a wise investment for the City. Levihn stated that he has received numerous citizen comments in support of Sam's Club locating in Louisville and the proposed sales tax rebate agreement. Howard stated that he is opposed to government subsidizing large entities but the City of Louisville and its citizens can reap tremendous benefits from the sales tax revenue Sam's Club will generate. Council cannot legally deny Sam's Club to develop in Louisville, but they can require that the building be aesthetically appealing, and this is what they have done. Keany stated his feelings are divided on this development. As a result of Sam's Club locating in Louisville, another major retailer has shown interest in locating here. The restaurants and gas stations located around this area stand to benefit from the ability of Sam's Club to draw people to their store. He does not feel that Council is giving away funds from the City coffers, rather they are rebating a small percentage of the revenue generated by Sam's Club. Davidson responded to the implication that the City of Louisville does not subsidize the smaller, independently owned businesses. He staed the City has spent over $4.3 million over the past six years to improve the downtown business district, for which most cities would charge the property owner. In response to setting a precedent, he reminded Council that they waived $100 thousand in landscape improvements under the previous design guidelines for Home Depot. Many of the surrounding communities are using money that would normally go to the school district to bring retail into their cities, and try to out-bid one another with incentives for retailers to locate within their community. He agreed with Sisk but is in favor of the rebate agreement.