CITY MAY TRACK BUYING HABITS STUDY COULD PRECEDE 'BUY LOCAL' CAMPAIGN AIMED AT LOCAL RESIDENTS.Byline: Grace Lee Staff Writer Thousand Oaks Thousand Oaks, residential city (1990 pop. 104,352), Ventura co., S Calif., in a farm area; inc. 1964. Avocados, citrus, vegetables, strawberries, and nursery products are grown. City Council tonight will consider spending $25,000 on a study aimed at determining whether a ``Buy Local'' campaign will convince residents to shop within city limits. If approved, the money would go toward the $70,000 cost of a marketing study, with the Chamber of Commerce picking up the balance. We're very dependent on sales tax sales tax, levy on the sale of goods or services, generally calculated as a percentage of the selling price, and sometimes called a purchase tax. It is usually collected in the form of an extra charge by the retailer, who remits the tax to the government. revenue,'' said Mayor Pro Tem [Latin, For the time being.] An abbreviation used for pro tempore, Latin for "temporary or provisional." A person who acts as a temporary substitute serves pro tem. Bob Wilson Bob Wilson is the name of:
The last fiscal year generated about $24 million in sales tax revenue, nearly half of Thousand Oaks' $50 million budget. He called the figure ``a very strong business base,'' and added, ``For me, it's better to be proactive than reactive.'' Planning ahead is especially crucial with the state awash in $38 billion worth of red ink red ink Health administration A popular term for financial losses. Cf in the Black. , he said. City officials need to plan ahead to ensure they have sufficient revenue for services. ``When (the state) is broke, they're always looking for Looking for In the context of general equities, this describing a buy interest in which a dealer is asked to offer stock, often involving a capital commitment. Antithesis of in touch with. ways not to give back sales tax revenue,'' he said. The marketing study is aimed at finding whether Thousand Oaks is losing customers to neighboring cities. Deputy City Manager Scott Mitnick said that Thousand Oaks faced competition with ``real intense development in Simi Valley Simi Valley (sē`mē, sĭm`ē), city (1990 pop. 100,217), Ventura co., SW Calif. in an oil, fruit, and farm region; laid out 1887, inc. 1969. and up toward the San Fernando Valley San Fernando Valley Valley, southern California, U.S. Northwest of central Los Angeles, the valley is bounded by the San Gabriel, Santa Susana, and Santa Monica mountains and the Simi Hills. .'' Wilson said that shoppers may mistakenly perceive that prices are lower in other areas, especially when it comes to buying cars. They may forgo the Thousand Oaks Auto Mall for dealerships in Oxnard or Simi Valley, he said. The city may also be losing tax dollars to Woodland Hills. By securing the opening of Nordstrom in The Oaks mall, Wilson said, the city has already given shoppers a strong reason to buy within their tax boundaries. A study would help determine if tax revenue is spilling away from the city, and set the stage for a campaign to urge residents to shop in Thousand Oaks. ``The main thing is to inform residents that it does count where you shop - for police services, libraries, different projects. Our lifestyle is enhanced,'' he said. John Prescott, interim community development director, said that tax revenue is even more important for Thousand Oaks than many other cities, because of its low, 1 percent property tax. Unlike many other cities, Thousand Oaks did not have a property tax in place after the voter initiative Proposition 13 passed in 1978, limiting the amount that houses could be taxed. The city established the 1 percent tax after the statewide measure passed. ``Generally, the broader-based and healthier the local economy, the better services for the people who live here,'' Prescott said. The meeting is 6 p.m. at City Hall, 2100 Thousand Oaks Blvd. Grace Lee, (805) 662-6757 grace.lee(at)dailynews.com |
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