After an unexpected backlash at a Committee of the Whole meeting a few weeks ago over distribution of the city’s lodging tax money sent staff looking for additional information about the projects involved, the City Council is ready to take up the matter again at next week’s meeting.

At issue is the disbursement of $217,000 in money collected from a 1 percent tax on lodging charges at local hotels, motels, RV parks and similar facilities. The money can be used for tourism marketing, marketing and operations of special events and festivals designed to attract tourists or operations of tourism-related facilities.

Essentially, the money is for use to draw people to the city and “put heads in beds” at local hotels.

This year, the city received 19 applications requesting just over $386,000. The council budgeted $265,000 for the fund.

A committee that included former councilmember Marcie Palmer, a member of the Chamber of Commerce, Renton Communications Director Preeti Shridar and employees from two local hotels, made the final recommendations to the council, reviewed the list and made the recommendations.

The list included 12 entities, ranging from $2,500 for Renton Civic Theater or Renton Technical’s STEM (Science Technology Engineering and Math) programs up to $75,000 for the Chamber of Commerce’s Visitor’s Center. Also on the list is $5,000 for the Return to Renton car Show, $10,000 for the city’s Seahawks Rallies, $12,500 for the Chamber’s Oktoberfest and $20,000 each for the Seattle International Film Festival Renton and the City’s Multi-cultural festival. There is also $50,000 set aside to “refresh” the city’s marketing campaign, which is now about 15 years old.

But in a January Committee of the Whole meeting, several councilmembers raised questions about both the process and the choices of where the money would go.

The money for the visitor’s center drew the most questions. Visitor Centers are an allowed use of the money and Economic Development Director Cliff Ling said the funds would be used to expand the hours the center is open and pay staff.

But Councilman Ed Prince said he wanted to review the proposal, concerned that the Center is not open on weekends, when tourists are most likely to have questions. He also said he was concerned because a Chamber member was on the board to approve the money.

“I had some questions,” Prince said this week. “I wanted to see the applications for myself.”

One of his dealt with why the city would be giving the Chamber money to host Oktoberfest, which functions as a fundraiser for the Chamber. During the initial meeting, Long said the Oktoberfest money would be used to expand the festival and hopefully draw more people from outside the city to the event.

Prince said he did not want the council to simply “rubber stamp” the recommendations, especially with new hotels coming into the city and the potential for larger disbursements in the future. Prince said he plans to ask some questions of staff on Monday, but declined to go into specifics.

Councilman Don Persson also asked to see the applications and said many of his concerns were waylaid.

“I’ve reviewed a lot of the applications and I’m more comfortable about it than I was,” he said.

Persson said recent changes to state law about how the money can be used and the new hotels coming in made him want to make sure the money was really being used to “put heads in beds.”

“I just want to be sure that’s what we’re doing,” he said.

Council member Ruth Perez also raised some questions about the money, but she said her main concerns were that she hoped to see more innovation in the proposals and she was “a little disappointed” by what she saw as she felt the applicants were taking the council and the money for granted.

“Their job is to present me a proposal that will make me say ‘wow,’” she said this week, adding that they should “raise the bar for the future to bring more tourism and revenue to the City.”

Perez said she also did not just want to rubber stamp the funding in fear that the recipients would begin to take it for granted that an event that was funded last year would be funded again.

“You have to keep getting better,” she said.

Perez said she would not be able to attend Monday’s meeting because she would be out of town for a conference, but would bring her concerns to staff before she left.

The council will discuss the matter during the Committee of the Whole meeting at 6 p.m. Monday at City Hall.