Most in Poll Say No to La Jolla Business Tax

A majority of La Jolla business owners who responded to a mail-in survey disapprove of a tax on downtown businesses, according to results released Thursday.

But the spokesman for the group that disburses the funds interpreted the results as a vote of confidence for the Business Improvement Tax (BID).

Ron Zappardino, president of Promote La Jolla, which oversees the disbursement of the $190,000 in funds collected, said the San Diego City Council will meet Tuesday night to settle the issue.

Two months ago, council members requested that businessmen respond to a mail-in survey on whether they wanted to “disestablish” the business improvement district--which taxes 1,188 businesses depending on type and location, and uses the money for advertisements and promotions.

The results of the poll, tabulated Thursday at San Diego City Hall, showed that of the 501 businesses that responded, 365, or 31.9%, voted to disestablish the special tax district and 136, or 14%, voted to not support disestablishment. Fifty-four percent of the eligible businesses did not vote.

Zappardino said Thursday that each of the 687 nonvoters was actually a vote to keep the tax district.

“In these bad financial times, if people choose not to vote against money they are to be charged, that means they must be in favor of the charge. That’s the only way you can read these results. So we see this vote as a clear victory.”

Anyway, Zappardino said, city laws state that businesses representing more than 51% of the total $190,000 collected must vote against the tax to overturn it. “The assessment values of the people who voted against the tax only total $59,825. That’s nowhere near half of $190,000. So they lose again.”

Walt Hauschildt, a development coordinator with the city of San Diego, said Thursday that the City Council would not be held to the results of the vote when it convenes on the issue Tuesday.

“The council members,” he said, “have the discretion to do whatever they want.”

The business improvement district was formed last year to raise funds to improve the climate of La Jolla business, supporters say.

But detractors have said that the monies are collected unfairly. The BID, they say, unfairly charges realtors a “medium retail” rate of $250 to $300 a year, depending on their location, instead of being included with attorneys and escrow companies, which pay a “low retail” assessment of only $35.

Also, banks and hotels have been left free of any charge, although some of those businesses benefit most from the advertising done with BID dollars, many have claimed.

None of the members of STOPBID, a group of La Jolla realtors who had fought the tax, could be reached for comment Thursday.