BY VICKI GRAVES

HERALD DEMOCRAT

BONHAM -- "There's a bunch of players, that's for sure," said City Manager Corby Alexander a day after Monday night's Bonham City Council meeting, where members heard a presentation from the Bonham Tourism Association requesting $26,525. The Bonham Area Chamber of Commerce has a similar request to fund its Visitors' Center. The issue is still on the table.

"At this point, the Council has not made a decision on which they will fund or if they will figure out a way to fund both," Alexander said. "If the Chamber of Commerce doesn't operate the Visitors' Center, (according to state law) the city would have to."

BACC Board Member and businessman Randy Bowen said the $84,000 in sales tax money that Bonham Economic Development Corp. has cut from BACC can now go into a "war chest" and that BACC and the BTA should be working together.

City Commissioner Wayne Moore said he wanted more time to think about it all and made the motion, which passed, to table action on a draft hotel-motel tax expenditure agreement between the city and the Chamber of Commerce.

Commissioner John Burnett said he voted alone against the hotel-motel tax expenditure because that money has to be used for things that would bring people to Bonham for overnight stays. He also thinks the Chamber of Commerce needs to know one way or the other if it's going to get the money.

"It's not fair to keep them in a holding position," said Burnett. "If they're going to have to move out of the Visitors Center, then I believe they need to know, so they can start making plans."

The hotel-motel tax contract expires Dec. 31.

"There are a lot of groups wanting a limited amount of money," Burnett said.

He said everybody knows what the Chamber has done and he's never heard a complaint. "I have talked to the city manager and he said he has never had a complaint, either," said Burnett. "I'm not real sure it's legal to give that money to those museums. All that money has to be used to bring people to Bonham who will stay overnight and I think they'd be hard-pressed to prove that (would happen). If they can't, it's in violation of state law. I don't want to be involved in anything that's not perfectly legal."

The city was giving about $34,000 to the Chamber to operate the Visitors Center and promote tourism, Burnett explained.

"They've been doing a heck of a job. They work hard with groups like the Kiwanis Club and its Trades Day. That probably brings in 20,000 people a year," said Burnett.

Burnett also mentioned the Autumn in Bonham Bike Rally which brings about 3,000 out-of-town visitors.

"We've got a good thing going. I just don't understand why we don't continue with that good thing," Burnett said. "If the city of Bonham cuts off funding to the Chamber of Commerce, then the Chamber will have to move out of the Visitor's Center and the Texas Department of Transportation has already called the Chamber of Commerce to verify that it's still operating the Visitor's Center and warned them that there will be consequences and they'll have to return (grant) money if they don't operate it according to rules and regulations set out when the grant was extended. I believe the Chamber of Commerce has proven that they are the ones to do that."