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Florissant Will Place Business License Fee Hike On Nov. 3rd Ballot
BY CAROL ARNETT
The Florissant City Council Monday passed a bill that will place a fee increase for business licenses on the Nov. 3rd ballot. Fee increases must be approved by ballot.
Before the meeting, Diane Weidinger, president of the Greater North County Chamber of Commerce, said that several members of the chamber had contacted her about the bill. “We were caught off guard,†she said after having received several calls from businesses concerned about the percent of the increase.
“We understand licenses haven’t been raised in a while,†Weidinger said, but said proposed increases of up to 500% were a surprise. Weidinger pointed out that extra expenses would be passed on to consumers.
Weidinger said that the chamber would move to put out more information about the election if the council passed the bill. “We need to get information out to businesses and consumers,†she said.
Mark Behlmann, owner of Behlmann Construction, a Florissant business, said that the percentage of the increases could be deceptive. “Mine is a 400% increase,†he said, but it’s still $75.†Behlmann said he wasn’t opposed to the increases, but suggested that the city reach out to the business community. “We understand you have to raise prices, but could you hold a carrot out as well?â€
After the meeting, Behlmann elaborated on what the city could do for business owners. “There are things the city could do to help businesses that wouldn’t cost anything,†he said. He suggested letting businesses put up temporary signs once a month or once a quarter, without requiring a permit, for example.
Behlmann also said that he felt the council and the committee that was formed to study the fee increases “missed an opportunity to use the Chamber of Commerce as a good resource.†He noted that the chamber could have assisted the city in this matter. He also said that he thought the city should have been increasing the fees over the years. “Instead, it’s boom – at the worst possible time,†he said.
Councilmen Andrew Podleski and Tom Schneider were the only votes against the measure. Podleski said he thought the whole license process should be revamped. “We’ve waited many years,†he said, “we can wait one more.†Podleski also noted that November was an off election, and turn-out would likely be low.
Schneider said he would like to give business owners and the chamber more time to work with the city on the fees. He said he heard from several business owners and they felt as though they didn’t have any input on the fee increases.
“We’ve been doing it on the cheap for a long time,†said Councilwoman Karen McKay. She noted that fees had not gone up in the 46 years since they were set. She noted that in her own business, a hair salon, individual stylist fees were $3. “It cost more to do the paperwork for the fee than the fee,†she said.
McKay said that city Director of Finance Randy McDaniel surveyed neighboring communities, and Florissant fees were very low. “The percent increase can sound like a lot,†Councilman Tim Lee said, but he noted that most of the fees were going up to $100 per year.
“This administration and the previous administration have asked for this,†Mayor Robert Lowery said. “The timing is not good, and that’s unfortunate. There’s a lot of misinformation out on the street.â€
Lowery said he had talked to six business owners the day of the meeting, and when he explained the situation and what their new fees would be, they understood. “We are wasting money on clerical personnel and people who have to process these licenses,†Lowery said, agreeing with McKay that the fees cost more to process than what was collected.
Lowery asked that the council consider postponing the bill, so that business owners could find out more about it. The council, however, voted on the bill. Podleski, Schneider, and Keith English voted against the bill.
