Indio city council member suspends ballot initiative for entertainment tax

Jan Young
InstantRiverside.com

Indio city council member Ascencion “Sam” Torres has announced that he will not move forward with the proposed admission tax initiative that threatened to end the popular Coachella and Stagecoach Music Festivals. The proposed tax initiative was an effort to generate additional income to support city services in these tough economic times.

The proposed ticket tax on events drawing more than 2,500 people would have meant an estimated $6 million in tax revenue to the city, which quickly got the attention of Goldenvoice, the promoter of Coachella and its country cousin, Stagecoach. The threat of the tax started serious discussions of moving the event to a tax-friendlier location.

These two music events have put Indio on the map of the music world and, even without the proposed tax, the hundreds of thousands of music fans they draw to the area generates substantial revenue for local businesses. Additionally, Goldenvoice supports many other organizations in the region and they have become a major employer during the Spring festivals. The concert promoter and the expansion of their music festivals has made them an integral part of the desert economy. The possibility of losing all of this far outweighs any advantage the tax revenue would bring.

According to Council Member Torres, “the potential for the music festivals to move out of the city exists, and if this should occur it would negatively impact the region; I cannot in good conscience allow this to happen no matter how dire the city’s circumstances. My sincere hope is that we can now move past this episode and I personally look forward to working to enhance relationships.”

Indio Mayor Glenn Miller responded, “I applaud Mr. Torres’ decision and thank him for putting the city’s long term prosperity first. We are committed to working with Goldenvoice to identify mutually beneficial solutions to ensure that the music festival economic engine stays in Indio and continues to boost the regional economy.”

Filed under News A1, Entertainment, Headline