Costa Mesa seeking tourism dollars

Greg Risling

COSTA MESA -- In an attempt to compete with other cities for the almighty

tourism dollar, a committee will ask the City Council on Monday to double

an existing hotel tax.

The 1% assessment levied on hotel guests during their stay in Costa Mesa

helps pay for promotional efforts to attract more tourists. The service

fee brings in about $400,000 annually, which would double should the

council approve the measure.

Members of the Costa Mesa Tourism Council, who are asking for the

increase, said that to remain competitive with other Southland cities,

another hike is needed.

“For the past five years, the assessment has done the job for us,” said

Diane Pritchett, executive director of the tourism council. “But we are

at the next stage and competing with other areas. We need to kick it up a

notch.”

Costa Mesa doesn’t want to be left behind as other Orange County cities

continue to add new developments, she added.

Cities such as Orange, Irvine and Mission Viejo have created new shopping

destinations to lure customers away from South Coast Plaza. Other cities

such as Anaheim have major projects under construction, such as the

expansion of the city’s convention center and Disneyland’s California

project.

Costa Mesa doesn’t get the same bang for its tourism buck as other cities

do. Its coastal neighbor, Newport Beach, also has a 1% visitors’ fee, but

it generates nearly the same amount of revenue sought by the Costa Mesa

committee.

The money -- about $700,000 -- comes from two sources: hotels and an

abundant vacation rental market. The funds are passed through the city

and given to the Newport Beach Conference and Visitors Bureau.

Costa Mesa City Manager Allan Roeder said the city tends to get more

business clientele who stay during the weekdays as opposed to the

beach-faring tourists Newport Beach attracts.

“The hotels do a good job in attracting business travelers,” he said.

“But I think there is feeling sometimes that Costa Mesa is oftentimes

overlooked.”

Should the council support the proposal, Pritchett said, the money would

be used for two additional staff members and to improve city marketing.

The more the city markets itself, the better chance it has to bring more

revenue to the general fund, she noted. There is also a room occupancy

tax visitors pay that amounts to about 6% in Costa Mesa. That figure

still lags behind other cities such as Newport Beach, which charges 10%.

Pritchett maintains that Costa Mesa can and will be a popular tourist

destination, given a strong push by the tourism council.

“The marketing hasn’t been as good as it could have been in the past,”

she said. “We have far more to offer than some other areas. The more we

promote Costa Mesa, the more likely our hotel occupancy will go up.”