Council approves $100,000 for Magnolia Musical Theatre
Council unanimously approved up to $100,000 in hotel occupancy tax funds for the Magnolia Musical Theatre group during the meeting, under the condition the group is not able to obtain funds from the city’s economic development board first before the Jan. 24 City Council meeting.
Hotel occupancy tax revenue is used to promote tourism and the hotel industry in certain cities; the funds come from stays in hotels and resorts and is not property tax money, city documents show.
Magnolia Musical Theatre will be running a production of Beauty and the Beast from July 19-Aug. 13. on the great lawn behind Bee Cave City Hall. The event will be the first annual summer musical held by the newly established group, according to the city.
Executive Artistic Director Andrew Cannata, who organized and produced the Little Shop of Horrors musical in 2021, said he formed Magnolia with the intent to partner with Bee Cave to bring musical theater to the area.
Council approves use of hotel occupancy funds for Bee Cave Arts Foundation
During the meeting, Council also unanimously approved $60,000 in hotel occupancy tax funds for the Bee Cave Arts Foundation for the upcoming year.
Foundation Director Deby Childress said, because of Council’s support for their organization, they were able to independently raise $80,000 for the upcoming Buzzfest 2023 event.
The city’s $60,000 in approved hotel occupancy funds will be used for the foundation’s events, Childress said, including Buzzfest, different art camps, a Mushroom Playhouse project for kids and different exhibitions.
Bee Cave fee schedule updated
Council unanimously approved a new fee schedule for Bee Cave that includes the elimination of certain library fees and building and development changes.
“The city hasn’t updated its fee schedule since 2014,” Bee Cave City Manager Clint Garza said.
Due to the city’s adoption of the Unified Development Code in June, several planning and development application types are not represented in the current fee schedule, he said.
A full list of proposed fee changes and comparison to other cities near the Greater Austin area are available on the city’s website. These include sign permits, development agreements, trip generation reports, site plans and plats, among other zoning, building and development applications.
Additionally, Bee Cave Library staff have requested that some fees and fines be eliminated to align with other public libraries in Texas.
