With a population of around 3,500, the city located along I-45 is about to see its 13th hotel open, said John Mayner, director of Visit Shenandoah, the city's convention and visitor bureau.
Hotel occupancy tax collections fund local tourism efforts through Visit Shenandoah, encouraging visitor spending and contributing to the city’s sales tax revenue.
How it happened
Mayner said the city opened three new hotels during the pandemic, noting that he wanted to make sure the increase in room supply did not affect demand for the city's existing hotel base.
“We’ve been able to do that and more,” he said, noting that the city saw growth in overnight hotel stays despite competition from other new regional hotels such as in Conroe.
The city saw about $1.85 million in hotel tax occupancy collections in 2022-23, Mayner said. In addition, the city saw $2.1 million in sales tax receipts from travel-related purchases in 2022, of which 95.3% were from visitors rather than residents, underlining the financial contributions of visitors to the area, he said.
Mayner said that a new Hampton Inn and Suites, which was announced in 2021, will also open soon at 18200 I-45 S., Shenandoah. It was originally projected for a 2023 opening.
“We’re finally here; I’m so exciting this is happening,” council member Michael McLeod said.
Also on the agenda
An item to award a contract for the construction of a veterans' monument at Vision Park at 149 Pine Forest Drive was tabled for a future date to discuss the project in more depth.
Hotel occupancy tax can also be used for historic preservation and to encourage tourists to visit preserved historic sites or museums, according to Texas Tax Code, Shenandoah officials said at the meeting, meaning the uptick in hotel funds could potentially also help draw visitors for that park and monument, which will highlight local veterans' contributions.
The council also discussed names for the park, with an initial suggestion of Shenandoah Veterans Park. Council member Ron Raymaker suggested The Veterans Memorial at Vision Park, and City Administrator Kathie Reyer said it has also been referred to as the Veterans Monument. The council said naming also be discussed at a future meeting to gather more community feedback.
One more thing
Three new police officers were sworn in at the beginning of the meeting, bringing the city up to full force "for the first time ever," council member Jim Pollard said.
"Right now, we have 21 police officers patrolling our streets every day all the time," Pollard said.
The three new officers are Isabel Puttkammer, Josh Hatch and David Deady.
In addition, the city named two new employees, Parks and Recreation Coordinator Susan Kyle and Code Enforcement Officer Rob Jenkins.
Editor's note: This story was updated to include the names of the police officers and other new employees.
