Paul Arrigo, president and CEO of the Baton Rouge Area Convention & Visitors Bureau, says he has no position for or against a proposed tax increment financing district for a Hampton Inn & Suites at Lafayette and Main streets. A TIF allows tax revenue generated by a project to be directed into paying off the debt incurred to build the project. South Carolina-based developer Windsor/Aughtry plans to ask for portion of the 13-cent hotel/motel tax to pay off the debt of building the 137-room hotel. Arrigo says his understanding is that his bureau’s 3-cent share of the tax will not be included in the TIF. The bureau’s share was part of a similar TIF for the redevelopment of the Hilton Baton Rouge Capitol Center, but that was before the CVB incurred bond debt to purchase a new building. The CVB needs funds to pay off the debt and to continue to promote the city, Arrigo says. A discussion of the Hampton TIF has been on the Metro Council agenda a few times, only to be deferred. The item may be debated by the council April 13. —David Jacobs
This story has been changed since it was originally published
