Briefs Mt. Crested Butte

Valuations lower than expected
Mt. Crested Butte town manager Joe Fitzpatrick told the council he had some preliminary information about the property valuations that will affect the town starting in 2014. So far, he said, signs point to an overall valuation 20 percent lower than the current valuation.

“There’s definitely a variety out there,” Fitzpatrick said, pointing out some property valuations that went down by 40 percent, some that went down 20 percent and others (in Wildhorse) that went up.
Because the town sets its mill levy and collects tax based on property valuations, the reduction will likely have a big effect on town finances. “The impact to our mill levy is going to be pretty painful,” he said. “And we’ll have to live with it for two years.”

March sales tax up
Fitzpatrick told the council at a meeting Tuesday, May 21 that March sales tax is in and collections are up from all areas of the town’s business community.
Overall, sales tax collections were up 15.3 percent over budget, while town officials expected March to be down 3 percent from last year. Retail businesses had a strong showing, with $341,000 in sales for March, while lodging establishments saw $240,000 in business for the month. Restaurants and other businesses also saw improvement over last year.
Of the sales tax collected this year to date, the town is 21 percent above what was budgeted.
“But we have to remember there is a bit of a false number there, because in February there was a one-time annual personal property tax collection,” he said. “So business is not up quite that much … It’s important to note, for example, that March is still 6 percent below March 2008, without adjusting for CPI. So our economy still has a ways to come back. But it’s good to have a positive year. ”
Fitzpatrick said the difference in sales tax collections between 2008 and this year is about $20,000, which translates into about $400,000 in sales for local businesses.

Legislators endorse MTCBPAC
State Senator Gail Schwartz and Representative Millie Hamner have officially endorsed the envisioned Mt. Crested Butte Performing Arts Center.
In a statement about the proposed 400-seat civic center, Hamner said, “Economic development is at the forefront of people’s minds these days and the Mt. Crested Butte Performing Arts Center organization epitomizes what a public/private collaboration could accomplish. The development of the arts, education and cultural appreciation are at the center of creating the sustainable, well-rounded community. This facility provides all of that.”
Town manager Joe Fitzpatrick was glad to see the project recognized, adding, “And we’ll be excited to see the building come out of the ground in the not-so-distant future.”

CBMR to resume parking garage construction
Crested Butte Mountain Resort will resume work on its new parking garage being built on the Manor Lodge site the first week of June.

RTA refunding town
The Gunnison Valley Rural Transportation Authority is refunding the town of Mt. Crested Butte almost $4,400 for money that wasn’t spent with the airline last year on Minimum Revenue Guarantees.
“We did not have to pay the total MRG amount, so that $89,000 extra that was contributed by the communities and Western State Colorado University is being refunded. Everybody’s getting a refund based on how much they put in,” Fitzpatrick said.
The town’s original contribution was $20,000 and the refund will go back into the town’s admissions tax fund.