Heavy equipment will have a presence on Basalt’s Midland Avenue throughout summer 2024. It is unknown if the work will impact business, but sales tax revenues for the first quarter were up.
Basalt sales tax revenues are defying the town government’s expectations, at least through the first quarter of 2024.
The town collected $2.65 million in sales-tax revenues through March, an increase of 5.3% from first quarter 2023, according to a report released Friday. The budget passed for 2024 projected a decline in sales-tax collections by $660,000 or nearly 9% from the 2023 budgeted amount.
But so far, business has proved resilient. Retail foods sales — which include the performances by City Market and Whole Foods — were up 8%. Restaurants with bars were up 16% while restaurants without bars were up about 18.5% for January, February and March. General retail sales were up 16% while sporting goods retail sales were down 5.6%.
The few blemishes on the first-quarter performance were sales of liquor, building materials and lodging. Liquor retail sales were down nearly 5%. Building materials were off by more than 9.2%. Lodging revenues were flat over the heart of the winter.
Basalt’s economic performance in 2024 likely hinges on how successful efforts are to attract shoppers and diners to downtown businesses during major construction on Midland Avenue. The town is undertaking a $16.8-million overhaul of the town’s main street. The phased construction will leave part of Midland Avenue torn up through a good chunk of the summer, and work will continue through the fall. Summer is Basalt’s bread-and-butter season for tourism.
Many business owners have expressed optimism for the final product, though they are concerned about foot traffic this summer. The town government will bring back the Midland Bucks program that encourages people via $25 coupons to shop and dine downtown. The Basalt Summer Concert Series on Wednesday nights at Basalt River Park and the Sunday Market on Midland Spur are also being counted on to maintain downtown vitality.
Basalt’s sales-tax collections have been all over the board in recent years, thrown eschew by spending habits during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. Sales-tax collections by the town surged more than 14.2% in 2020 over 2019, and they jumped another 16.9% in 2021.
The town’s sales-tax revenues topped $10 million for the first time in 2022, when the growth was another 17% over the prior year. Sales-tax revenues for 2022 were just shy of $10.5 million.
The bubble finally burst in 2023 — at least in the growth trend. Sales-tax revenues were down nearly 3.8% last year compared to 2022. However, the town still collected $10.01 million — only the second time collections have exceeded $10 million. So growth eased up, but sales remained at a high level.