Temporary Meals Tax Increase Vote Deferred to Jan 27, 2025

Temporary Meals Tax Increase Vote Deferred
1% Increase Would Fund a Recreational Pool and Fitness Center

For the second time, the Vienna Town Council voted to defer the proposal to temporarily raise the Town’s meals tax from 3% to 4% to pay for a new public pool and fitness facility. The move came during its regular meeting on Monday, Dec. 9, 2024, at Vienna Town Hall. The vote was also deferred after a public hearing at the last regular Town Council meeting on Nov. 18.

At issue is the proposal to temporarily raise the meals tax by 1% for a 10-year period to pay for design and construction of a new aquatics and fitness facility. The center would be located on the former Town Annex site located at 301 Center St., S, which the Town purchased in 2020 from the former Faith Baptist Church. The Town Council deferred its decision on the meals tax proposal to the Jan. 27, 2025, meeting to allow time to gather more information about the proposed facility’s long-term operational costs and discuss it at a work session on Jan. 21, 2025, at 7 p.m. in the community room at the Vienna Police Department located at 215 Center St., S, Vienna, Va.

The Town’s current 3% meals tax is among the lowest in the region and pays for capital projects such as roads, building improvements and park projects. It applies to prepared, ready-to-consume meals, and does not apply to standard groceries.

The temporary meals tax increase was used once before, from 2002 to 2008 to pay for the Vienna Town Green, which now serves as a central gathering space for public and private events and activities. Now, the Town Council believes a new aquatic and fitness center would further enhance the community’s quality of life and fulfill a longstanding community wish. If the temporary 1% meals tax is approved, the facility would be constructed by 2030.

More information about the proposed aquatic and fitness facility is available online at www.viennava.gov/annex.