Print edition: 
Drury Southwest, the company renovating the Broadview Hotel, plans to seek a 2-cent sales tax to help pay for the remodeling project.
The tax would be added only to sales at the hotel. A relatively new state law allows developers to create "community improvement districts" to charge such a tax, then use the money to pay for construction, remodeling and even ongoing expenses.
But there's a twist to this plan.
The city will have to sign a petition in favor of the extra tax because it is a partial owner of the property; it issued industrial revenue bonds that give it title to the property, which it leases back to Drury.
The move is on the city's consent agenda Tuesday. Items listed as consent are typically approved without discussion.
Drury would have to return to the council later for a public hearing where people could comment about the proposed district.
The move doesn't have any impact on the city's finances since the taxes are paid by customers and spent by the business.
Drury is in the midst of a $29 million renovation at the historic Broadview Hotel that includes an enclosed hot tub and pool overlooking the Arkansas River.
The city, meanwhile, has started a $2.2 million river bank improvement project.
