Farmington not on RAP bandwagon

The Farmington City Council has decided not to put a sales-tax increase for a performing arts center to a vote in November's election.

Residents in Centerville, where the center could be built, Bountiful, Woods Cross and West Bountiful will be voting on the tax increase, which would generate $10.36 million in revenue by 2015 if residents in all four cities approve.

The sales-tax increase, known as a RAP tax (for recreation, arts and parks) is a one-tenth-of-a-cent increase that lasts for eight years.

Centerville has proposed to build a $14.2 million South Davis Performing Arts Center, which would house a 500-seat main theater, as well as a 150- to 200-seat black box theater, recital halls and recording space.

The center would be built on land owned by Centerville's Redevelopment Agency near 400 West and 500 North.

Farmington Mayor Scott Harbertson said most council members didn't want to look like they were supporting a RAP tax, so the resolution died for lack of a motion. A similar situation played out recently in North Salt Lake, where the RAP tax couldn't find a friend among the council members present.

Harbertson said his city currently has a community arts program, which would not go away, even if a performing arts center is built in Centerville.

But if the measure passes in Centerville during the election, Farmington residents would end up supporting the tax because many of them shop in Centerville, Harbertson said.

He said he's concerned that a RAP tax could be one tax too many for South Davis residents to deal with.

County commissioners recently decided to place a .25-cent sales-tax increase on the ballot for all county residents. That, combined with property-tax increases from Davis County, the Davis School District, Davis Mosquito Abatement District and Weber Basin Water Conservancy District, might be too much for residents.

Utah residents will also vote on a voucher law, designed to provide money to parents who want to send their children to private schools.

Centerville's finance director, Blaine Lutz, said he hopes residents will evaluate each ballot question on its merits.

"Is it something worthwhile?" he said. "Is it worth 10 cents per $100 you spend?"

Lutz said he anticipates that if the measure passes in the four voting cities, each city could contribute 57.5 percent of their RAP tax revenue to building the performing arts center.

If five cities were involved, each would have been asked to contribute 50 percent, Lutz said.

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E-mail: jdougherty@desnews.com

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