A History of the Durango Business Improvement District

Building Durango BUSINESS.

Durango, CO Genuine Colorado since 1880!

In August of 1997, a grassroots coalition of volunteer business leaders petitioned the Durango City Council to form the Durango Conference Center Business Improvement District. The purpose of the district was to create a funding mechanism for a wide range of feasibility studies that would determine the viability of constructing a downtown conference center, a project that had been a matter of discussion among city officials for decades.

Project supporters presented council members with petitions signed by approximately 65% of the property owners within the proposed taxing district, and the formation of the Durango Conference Center Business Improvement District was approved.

In November of 1997, people who lived, leased or owned property within the newly formed district voted to approve a 1.5 mill levy increase in property taxes to fund the requisite feasibility studies and to move the project forward. The ballot question stipulated that the mill levy would sunset in 1999, and any funding beyond that date would require a separate district election.

In January of 1998, the Durango City Council appointed a five-person board of directors to oversee the research and development of the proposed Durango Conference Center. The original board members were hoteliers Rod Barker and Chris Vivolo, businessmen Ted Hermesman and Jerry Poer, and banker Steve Parker. Bob Lieb volunteered his services as an unpaid staff member to coordinate the initial election and interview research firms capable of conducting the feasibility studies.

In the meantime, working groups comprised of local volunteers were formed to study potential building sites, parking and ground transportation plans, air transportation and technology needs, and to conduct a preliminary market analysis. A City-owned site located at the corner of E. Second Avenue and 7 th Street (known locally as the Morehart site) was identified as the best downtown Durango location available on the market at that time. A subsequent engineering analysis of the site determined it to be inadequate due to its limited size and sloping topography.

In January of 1999, Convention, Sports & Leisure International (CSL) of Minneapolis, Minnesota, was hired to conduct an in-depth market and economic analysis of the proposed conference center project. CSL research would include evaluation of market potential and regional competition; analysis of future event size, scope and community impact; review of alternate sites and preliminary architectural design of the facility; and cost estimates of construction, operations and maintenance.

In April, 1999, voters within the City of Durango approved a measure to eliminate the vendor fee and use those funds to retire a proposed bond to acquire real estate and construct the Durango Conference Center. Up to that point, Durango merchants were permitted to keep the vendor fee - 3.33% of the city sales tax they collected - to cover any bookkeeping costs incurred during the collection of taxes.

The ballot question stipulated that if District voters did not pass a bond issue during the November 1999 election, or if results of the in-depth market and economic analysis did not support the construction of a conference center, the results of the vendor fee question would be null and void. The district board of directors decided not to include the bond issue on that November ballot, opting instead to take a more cautious, steady approach to the project by conducting more thorough research into the conference business. As a result, the vendor fee was never collected for use by the Durango Conference Center Business Improvement District.

However, in November of 1999, district voters did opt to grant a one-year extension of the 1.5 mill property tax to complete the second round of in-depth feasibility studies, and to enable the board of directors to continue negotiating with the City of Durango for an adequate site.

In the fall of 2000, CSL presented its findings to the board of directors and the Durango business community. The researcher's concluded that the proposed conference center would indeed improve the local economy by attracting visitors to the area that otherwise would not visit Durango. The annual economic impact of the project on Durango's economy was estimated to be $1.2 million -- $7.1 million/year, but the facility would require a public subsidy of approximately $200,000/year to cover operations and maintenance costs.

Researchers further concluded that a public/private partnership would be the optimum means of financing such a project. To this date, negotiations continue with the City of Durango to identify a suitable site and create an adequate funding mechanism for the construction and operation of a Durango Conference Center.

From 2001 to the present, the district board of directors has been researching alternate means of boosting business and commerce within the City of Durango. In 2002, tourism in Durango slowed to a crawl as wildfires raged through the northern reaches of the county. Determined to take a proactive approach to economic development, the district board commissioned PEN/INC of Bayfield to research 10 similar communities throughout the Rocky Mountain West to assess the economic impact and related funding of conference centers and special events in those communities. The resulting Community Profiles opened the door to an interesting and highly beneficial new direction for the district.

The research gleaned from the Community Profiles indicated that special events have drawn thousands of new visitors and contributed significant income to the local economies of towns such as Telluride, CO, Taos, NM, Moab, UT and Estes Park, CO. Multi-day special events had the most significant economic impact on the economy, and events that capitalized on the area's unique natural amenities (river running, hiking, biking and skiing) were particularly successful in attracting new visitors and their dollars to the community.

In 2003, the district board voted to use revenues carried over from previous years to fund a grant program for organizers of local special events while continuing its research and development of a future conference facility. Also in that year, the board voted to change its name to the Durango Business Improvement District, eliminating specific reference to a conference center. In November 2003, district voters demonstrated their support of this new direction by reinstating the district mill levy through 2010.

In 2003 and 2004, the district board granted more than $50,000 to event organizers for marketing and promotion outside of the area. The board has budgeted approximately $100,000 for similar special events grants in 2005. By growing the number, size and economic impact of area special events, the district board will be able to determine the specific amenities, facilities and services needed to attract new visitors to the area.

The board of directors of the Durango Business Improvement District continues to research the conference and convention industry, and will continue to identify partners - both public and private - that may one day share the costs and benefits of a multi-use conference facility in Durango. In the meantime, its special event grant program has had an immediate, positive effect by expanding the marketing efforts of event organizers throughout the community.

© 2004, Durango Business Improvement District

Authored by Kristen Hartzell, PEN, Inc. Bayfield, CO

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