City wants public input on trolley contract renegotiation

BY PRU SOWERS

KONK LIFE STAFF WRITER

Key West City Commissioners will hold a second workshop on Wednesday, Nov. 19, to hear public opinion on renegotiating four sightseeing franchise agreements responsible for the dozens of daily train and trolley tours that roam city streets each day.

The meeting will be held at Old City Hall, 510 Greene St. Commissioners and Mayor Craig Cates want to have an agreement hashed out before the franchise agreements with Historic Tours of America, which operates the Conch Train and the Old Town Trolley, and City View, which runs its own sightseeing trollies and owns Duck Tours Seafari, expire. Both companies have a 20-year contract with the city that expires Feb. 7, 2015.

An initial workshop in September identified some of the issues commissioners want to address in the new franchise agreements. But public comment was limited to representatives from both sightseeing firms. Commissioners now want to hear residents’ opinions on the ubiquitous tour vehicles.

In addition to the November workshop, there is currently a link on the city’s website where residents can submit comments, www.keywestcity.com. Comments can also be sent by mail to City Hall, 3132 Flagler Ave., Key West, Fla., 33040.

“Depending on how this [email comment link] works out and how productive it is, we might use this to gather input on other things,” Assistant City Manager Sarah Spurlock said.

“We rarely get enough input to get enough solid information” from residents, agreed City Commissioner Teri Johnston. “People are always coming up to us afterward” to comment on a vote previously taken.

One of the concerns Johnston has about the current franchise contract is that it allows Historic Tours of America (HTA) to offer an unlimited number of daily tours with no cap on the number of vehicles operating at the same time. That has effectively discouraged competing tour bus operators from entering the Key West market, she said.

“It can blow the competition out of the water. We’re going to create a level playing field for any franchise coming into the city and existing franchises,” Johnson said.

Another concern voiced by Commissioner Mark Rossi was the noise generated by tour bus operators on the loudspeakers in each sightseeing vehicle. Similar tours in other cities use a closed speaker system that requires customers to use headphones.

“We have heard a tremendous amount of complaints about the noise coming out of these things,” Rossi said. “We have to decide. Do we want it to be earphones or speakers that you hear in the neighborhoods?”

Commissioner Jimmy Weekley and Mayor Craig Cates believe that any issue can be successfully negotiated with the tour operators, pointing out that sightseeing attractions are an important part of the city’s tourism industry.

“It is a major part of our economy to be able to provide this to our visitors,” Weekley said.

And it’s not only tourists who benefit from the tours. Both City View and HTA pay five percent of their gross annual revenues to the city, with a guaranteed payment.

“We think the franchise agreement works. In the last 12 months, Historic Tours of America has paid $432,000 in franchise and license fees to the city,” said Ginny Stone, an attorney representing HTA. “We look forward to the adoption of a franchise ordinance that would allow us to continue with that good partnership with the city of Key West.”

 

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