The proposal would keep the current 0.3 percent sales tax rate, which has been used to pay for the city’s police station bond. Under the new plan, that revenue would be directed toward construction of a multi-purpose recreation facility.
Council member Jason Davis said matching the existing rate was intentional.
“The 0.3 amount was selected because it's the same amount that we're currently paying for the police station bond… it’s easier to ask the voters to approve a tax that wouldn't result in any change in what they've been paying for the past several years,” Davis said.
The project has been in the city’s Capital Improvement Plan for more than five years. Last summer, the council approved $900,000 from the gas line fund for the project, then added $400,000 from the general fund.
Homer’s current main indoor recreation space, the old HERC building, has structural and safety issues that make it unsuitable for long-term use. Built in the 1950s, the building contains asbestos, lead and polychlorinated biphenyls, or PCBs, toxic industrial chemicals banned in the 1970s that can cause serious health problems, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Davis said removing PCBs is one of the biggest obstacles to replacing the building.
“That’s the material that requires a very special type of destruction process that doesn’t exist in the state of Alaska. Even the soils that are contaminated… would need to be shipped out of state for a special kind of incineration,” he said.
If approved by voters, the tax could generate between $8 million and $10 million over eight years, depending on the economy. Davis said the revenue would likely be combined with grants or bonds to complete the project.
He acknowledged there are reasons to delay the vote, including the lack of a final site and design. But he said starting to collect money now would save years compared to waiting.
If the measure fails, Davis said the council would probably wait until those plans are in place before bringing a similar proposal back to voters.
The council will take public comment Monday before deciding whether to add the measure to the October ballot.
