WICHITA, Kan. (AP) Wichita voters resoundingly rejected a proposal to give $2.25 million in hotel guest tax money to developers of a downtown hotel.
The vote on the proposal for a 177-bed Ambassador Hotel lost Tuesday by a margin of 61 percent to 38 percent, or 16,198 to 10,107 votes.
The proposal would have allowed the hotel developers to keep 75 percent of the guest taxes collected for 15 years.
The special election was forced by a petition drive conducted by opponents, who argued the city was giving too many tax incentives to the developer.
The hotel developer, Paul Coury, says he is disappointed by the vote and will respond by making cuts to the project that he hopes customers will not notice.
