UCDA fights for funding

Creston City Council was split on possibly cutting funding to the Union County Development Association at their meeting May 7.

UCDA receives funds from the Hotel/Motel Grant Program. According to the city of Creston, “each fiscal year, up to $100,000 of the revenue derived from the hotel/motel tax shall be expended for the promotion and maintenance of tourism.”

Since 1997, UCDA has served as a non-profit focused on new industry recruitment, business and industry retention, retail recruitment and retention, housing initiatives and tourism. Along with grants, donations and funds from the county, UCDA has received $20,000 from the city for the last few years.

In the fiscal year 2025 proposed hotel-motel budget, funding dropped to $15,000. Councilmember Richard Madison said this was because the city also put money toward the new housing director position.

“We have funded UCDA for $10,000 in TIF funds for their building for I don’t know how many years. We funded them $20,000 every year,” Madison said. “Last year, we funded them essentially $35,000 for the benefit package for the housing director, so I just felt that they needed to be aware that there is a line and this is it.”

Councilmember Kiki Scarberry disagreed with this, stating UCDA brought $65,000 toward the position as well through an outside donor.

“The implication is they should be punished because they brought $65,000 for a position that comes out on all of everything that this community says we need, that we need to work on our housing,” Scarberry said. “They bring $65,000 to the city, the city only has to bring $35,000 to that and we feel like they need to be punished for doing that.”

Madison had previously proposed taking all of the funds given to UCDA and putting it toward the housing director position. Then-mayor Gabe Carroll said doing this would effectively shut UCDA down.

Earlier in the evening, UCDA Director Mindy Stalker asked the council rethink the decision to reduce funding.

“I hope that you reconsider that and fund us the amount that we have received over the last several years,” Stalker said. “We’ve never asked for an increase in that funding.”

The hotel-motel funding request also includes projects such as Fiesta on Maple, Party in the Park, Hot Air Balloon Days and Crest Area Theatre productions. The council was unable to vote on each item separately. Due to the drop in funding to UCDA on the proposed list, the entire funding request was voted down 3-3. Councilmembers Steve Wintermute, Jocelyn Blazek and Madison voted yea, while Martin Graham, Josh Thompson and Scarberry voted nay.

The hotel-motel funding request will undergo changes and return at tomorrow’s council.