Briefs Mt. Crested Butte

December sales collections up
Mt. Crested Butte businesses finished out 2013 strong, with December sales tax collections that were 6 percent, or about $15,000, over budget. That caps a year when every month brought in higher-than-expected sales tax revenue.
For the year, Mt. Crested Butte sales tax collections are up 18 percent, although that number is made artificially high by a one-time personal property tax that was collected last February.
“Business was not up 18 percent,” Town Manager Joe Fitzpatrick told the Town Council. “But it was up quite a bit.”

Town budget gets a boost
Town Finance Director Karl Trujillo told the council that it wasn’t just sales tax that increased last year, although the extra $230,000 in sales tax revenue collected in 2013 won’t hurt town coffers.
Trujillo told the council at a meeting Tuesday, February 18, “Basically when we did our projections for the budget back in October, we ended up in a better cash position than we had anticipated.” Across the budgets, revenues were up by $70,000 and expenditures were down around $8,000. Building revenues were also $9,000 above budget, at $236,000.
After the budget was set, the town will be able to transfer $390,000 into its capital fund budget, $40,000 more than expected. From that, $200,000 has been budgeted to finish the town’s recreation path.
And along with growing sales tax and building revenue, a sign that the financial future is improving for Mt. Crested Butte is the $47,000 year-over-year increase in admissions tax collected, which comes from event ticket sales in town. Last year the overall collection was $603,000; from that, $393,000 is being budgeted to go out as admission tax grants this year.

Chamber searching for new ED
Chamber of Commerce Director Dan Marshall told the council his time at the organization was coming to a close. “We’re set to jet to Panama in late July,” he said.
A search committee for a new executive director is in place and is hoping to have Marshall’s replacement on the job in early June for an initiation during Crested Butte Bike Week, Taste of Crested Butte and the Fourth of July holiday.
“My push is to search locally, find that candidate who knows the area and the community and knows the people that make it tick,” Marshall said. “If that person isn’t there, then we will make that circle a little bigger. But we’re not going to go out and work our way in.”

Buck recognized for service to RTA
Councilman and Rural Transportation Authority Chairman Chris Morgan presented Mayor William Buck with a certificate recognizing his efforts over the past six years to bring better regional bus and air service to the Gunnison Valley.
“As a board member through difficult economic times, you have helped maintain a viable air program and a public transportation system serving the entire valley,” the certificate says.
Buck is stepping down from the board and will be replaced by Councilman Danny D’Aquila.