Anaheim Mayor Tom Tait says there is no legitimate reason to give Disney the tax break.
Adam Elmahrek reports: "When Disneyland officials unveiled plans this week for a massive new luxury hotel in Anaheim, they also applied for a room-tax subsidy worth well over $200 million, which would be the largest hotel tax subsidy in the city’s history."
The proposal would build a 700-room, 900,000-square-foot hotel on a parking lot adjacent to the hotel, according to Elmahrek.
The subsidy request was made through channels created by the city's hotel development incentive program, "which allows developers to collect 70 percent of the room taxes generated over 20 years by luxury hotels." Elmahrek shares the math for the Disney proposal, which would generate $14.7 million in room tax revenue, in the first year of operation. Thus, $10.3 million "would be rebated back to Disneyland."
Mayor Tom Tait is quoted in the article describing Disneyland's request as "insane."
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